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-.=----=- .- $., March 12, 1974, Dert'oer, Cclc. Views vary on ecological damage of shale mining (((mI.lDuf'd 'rom pal::f':1) Enforcing the If'ases will be the r~eral mining supervisor, an emplo)'e 01 the U.S. Geolog- Ical SlJn'e)', .....ho has the au- thority to ....ai\,e any environ.. menial Pro\ isions 01 W least' "at any time" j( it looks like the oil companies are going to take a financial beating. 1lY. (',\S, 'or example. allow tht'useo( pt'sticidesand herbl. cides in the basin. He can pennit the oil companies 10 fill in and eliminate slreams. He can pennit the de5truction ot eooangere-d or rare animal species and lheir habitats. He ....m decide It the oil company dev~Lopment plans submitted for tracts C-a and C- bare environmenlaUy suit- abh'. "All ot this aulhority Is given to Ihe mining supen.isor desplle his lack of t'cologlcal f.'xpeni~e:' says the Institulf.' of Ecology, a privatt' re- st'arch agency, in Washington. The Departmf'nt of Intt'rlor givf's tht' following justifkation for lodging su,:h extraordinary JlQ'I\ers with the mining super- visor: "It is roosldereod prefer- able that the ol>(>rator IGuJr, Standant of lndiana or thf' Atlantic Rkhfield cOJl..<;ortium) have one rf'spoIlSible Interior oUidal to deal ....ith in regard 10 the resourees and manage- ment ot thcse specific l...ased lands." Besides, says the gon'rn- menl, the- mining supen'isor will have a staft induding f'n\-irunmental experts. ThI' Department 01 Interior has suggc~tf'd lhat after Ji\e )'ears, minim: operations on tracts C.a and Cob will be turn- ing out mort' than 120,000 tons of "spenl," 0 r pnxessed, shale each da)'. It !s hopffi mlJl:h of the wasil.' material can be put back in Ihe mines. But that ma). not be economi- cally fcasible. Oil shalf' ex- pan d s In \olum... during processing. Gn.F ..'SO Standard of Indiana predic! 50 per ce-nt of the spent shale they produce lrom C..a will han' 10 be dis-- posl"d of II.bO\f' ground. filling canyons. ltukhE>s and rayines to a UE'l'lh of 200 feet. Cob may n~ sb; milf''' of ~uch CAnyon- land lnr thf' spent shale it'will I.roduce in 30 years. The spent shale prohahly will be In the form 01 sally black dust or powder. Will an).thing grow on ttK>!.e hundreds of acres o( wa~11"- land? TIle oil companies will ha\.e to find out. The leases haye a "strong rf'vegetation objective," according to thf' Department of 1nterior. The fe-deral governmcnt - the taxpa)"ers - w III take o\'er from there, trying to get something \\"Orthwhilf' to grow In the stulf. It tJw re\-.f'J;ctation bill soars while the- oil companies are still working on the problem, the public will pick up much of the tab any\\-'a)'. Extraordinary re\'egf'lation costs can be creditl'd against Jhll.le- royal- tit'S due the go\'ernment. ReVf'getation reSt"areb, prl- maMly by the Atlantic Rich- field Co. and Colorado State University, is underway. Paul Kilburn. f'n\<lronmental coordi- nator for Atlantic Richfield, 15 a bubbling optimist II.bout It. "WE'I.I. BE able to get the- same tiling to grow there that grev.' there befol"t':' he- said. "It will just take time and clI.re." Healthy grasses and somf' shrubs ha\.f' succeffied on tf'st pIOIS, he said. CSU researchers aren't 8.'1 certain. Wayne Cook, hf'ad 01 th... C S U range science depart- nu-nt, b patE'ntly pessimistic: "To (':f't shrubs to KTOw on that stuft I think you'd have- to water It and fertillle it ad In- finitum. I don't think it can be returned. to a natural stalf' In )'001" lifetime or mine." The Department of thf' lntf'r- lor OOflct'd...d it might tak'" 20 to .0 Yf'ars 10 1f'1I.fTI whf'ther plants eapablf' 01 supporting the Piceance Ba~ln's wildlifl' composition will rf'produce and Oourbh in the 5pt"nt oil shale. Anothel", simpler re\-f'J\t'III.- t Ion question also remains unanswf'rl'd. Thousands of acres of the basin will be open- pit mined, Its topsoil remo\'I'd. "Succl'ssful establishment and f'nduring cO\"l'r 0 \' e r large 8f('aS has yet to be d..mon- strated," the InIerlor Drpart- mE-nt said In onE' rf'port. "Suc- ce!'sful establishment ot shrnb B nd \.r'l;"@ co\'er o\.er lll.tgf' art'as II. n d under \-af)'lng c()ndition.~ is un~'eMlI.ln." TIlt: IS:o'TlTl'TF. of EC'fll~y studif'd thl;' lntl'rior nepart. mE'nt.s assf',,~ment of the Te- \'egf'tafion possibilities on the oil shale lands and condudl:>d; ..It is clear that Te\f'gelaliOfl for....il<Ihtf'is most unlikel)'. II aprJ('ars that increasing areas of \'ital habitat will bI' Ir- revocabl)' lo&t du... to oil shale deVf'iof,ment." The oil companif's art'n't re- quired to lrY to restore the oil shale- lands to a wildlife-sup- porove statf'. They may be restorl'd for "8 differ...nt use ltom that to which the-y wcre devoled. immedi.:\Iely prior to the issuance of Ihis lea~f':' the agreement .....ith thf' go\'ern- mf'nlsays. The Department or lntf'rior has su~ested that 12 min~ operations like those plarmed for C-a and C-b could be Undf'I"\\'ay In lhe north central basin by 1985. Each will le-ave behind thoUsand of acres 01 tf'rrain struggling 10 retum to jls natural - wildlife-suppor- th'e-slale. BL'T nlE Departmf'nt ot In- tf'rior may not know for 70 more years If shrub ft'Vl:'J.:;eta- liOn enorts can sU"(,f'ed, If plant life gfO\\TI On spent shale can endure and reproduce. Will Wf' fedf'ral governmf'nt restrain the oil giants until the yrar ~4 _ partiCUlarlY in thf' face 01 an Increasingly 5e\'...re enf'tg)' shortagf'? Or \..;11 Wse Kreat corpora- tions, whieh hll.\'e In\'t'sted sm million just or a crack 11.1 two tracts of Q1lorad-o land be un- !ell.shl'd to mine marf' land and to leave behind vast patches of salty, black sand that ..von't sUPi'ortlife? I! ( " I' I: ,. 0035