The Bureau of Land Management is considering gas developments in an area about five miles south of Roosevelt, a region that the agency acknowledges has wilderness characteristics.

The sites are within the Desolation Canyon wilderness proposal supported by environmentalists. But it is not within a federal wilderness study area, and under an April 2003 agreement between the Interior Department and the state, the agency no longer gives de facto wilderness protection to such places.

Until Friday, BLM officials will accept comments on the Gasco Production Co. plans to develop natural gas wells on federal and state leases in the Wilken Ridge area.

According to an environmental assessment issued by the BLM's Vernal Field Office, two wells would be drilled on federal leases and three wells would be drilled on state land. Although the BLM does not have control over the state sections, it analyzed these impacts also because roads and pipelines could impact federal land.

"Gasco needs to drill the proposed wells in order to fully develop its federal and state leases by first determining if natural gas is extractable in commercial qualities, and then to extract it," says the environmental assessment. "Roads are needed to access the drill sites, and pipelines are needed to carry the product to a central location for shipping."

The assessment says under the prosed action, about 27 acres of land with wilderness character would be disturbed. "Another estimated 60 acres would be impaired (in their wilderness values) by being within sight of the new road and wells," it adds.

On the western part of the project area, wilderness character of more than 700 acres would be impaired, based on line of sight of the road and wells. "If noise from traffic is considered, that acreage could be significantly larger," it adds. However, it's not anticipated that traffic along the road would be heavy enough to cause that kind of problem.

Total acreage where wilderness characteristics would be impaired is 824 acres, says the assessment.

Stephen Bloch, staff attorney for the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance in Salt Lake City, commented that not only did the Utah Wilderness Coalition recommend designating the area as wilderness, but the BLM itself recognizes the location as having land of wilderness quality.

"But because of the April 2003 'no more wilderness' settlement between the state of Utah and Interior Secretary (Gale) Norton, we're seeing projects like these moving forward," Bloch said.

Meanwhile, he said, the BLM Vernal Field Office is working on a new land-use plan. One of the alternatives being considered in the plan is designating the location being discussed as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern.