BLM auction in Salt Lake City will test new environmental reforms

Sgamma, whose group represents 400 independent oil and gas companies in the West, said that trend is duplicated in other states. "We have not seen a significant reduction in protests in the Rockies" as a result of the May 2010 reforms, she said.

In this protest filed by the groups, the BLM is accused of failing to take into account noise that would result from drilling activity, visual impacts to the scenery and increases in ozone pollution in the region that would happen.

The groups also assert oil and gas development on the parcels will add to regional dust, which could contribute to early snowmelt. Additionally, protesters say there are several rare and imperiled plants in the area where mitigation efforts by the companies may not be sufficient to protect them.

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