Energy From Public Lands

Energy From Public Lands. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Line On Agriculture.

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar along with Secretary for Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan and Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, recently spoke to the National Association of Counties each addressed how their departments will carry out the President’s Recovery and Reinvestment plan and other issues effecting county governments. The Interior Secretary announced that royalties for energy produced on public lands will return to a 50/50 split with the states where the energy comes from.

SALAZAR: In the first budget that President Barrack Obama has presented to the Congress, that split is restored back to its traditional level of 50/50. And that’s because we recognize the importance of getting the rightful share to the counties and to the states of what they deserve from the royalties that are produced from those public lands in your states. So I’m proud of that particular part of the budget.

Secretary Salazar says a new energy super highway is planned to bring energy from public lands to population centers.

SALAZAR: We will create, with our partners at the Department of Energy, with FERC, with you the county commissioners, with the states what hopefully will become the super electronic highway; a place where we can take our energy from the places where it’s produced to place where it will be consumed.

Secretary Salazar will work to restore landscapes to preserve them for future generations.

SALAZAR: I want to work very hard in this department to enhance and restore our treasured landscapes all across this country from historic sites and preservation areas like Ellis Island to making sure that we are funding the people to work in our Fish and Wildlife Refuges all across this country to working in partnership and avoiding the conflict that often happens between the federal government and state and local governments and private landowners to make sure that this landscape of America is one which we can be proud of and our children can be proud of as we all strive to keep America beautiful.

Secretary Salazar promised that the Department of the Interior will stay involved as a partner addressing water challenges facing the country.

SALAZAR: I know the water fights and disputes that are being caused now by the scarcity of water in California. I know the water disputes that are going on between Florida, Georgia and Alabama in the southeastern part of the state and those kind of disputes will continue to flourish across this country. And what we will do through the Bureau of Reclamation and through my other agencies in the Department of the Interior is to try to provide a helping hand in trying to defuse and trying to resolve some of those water disputes.

That’s today’s Line On Agriculture. I’m Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.