Draft environmental impact statement

A group of oil and gas companies (Companies) has notified the BLM and Forest Service of their intent to develop additional coal bed methane (CBM) resources in Wyoming Powder River basin. The Proposed Action includes drilling, completing, operating, and reclaiming almost 39,400 new CBM wells and constructing, operating, and reclaiming various ancillary facilities needed to support the new wells. The Proposed Action would occur in an almost 8,000,000-acre Project Area. Drilling would begin in 2002 and continue for 10 years. Three alternatives were considered in detail.