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Committee Action

Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources to Hold Field Hearing on Domestic Oil Shale Research, Regulation and Roadblocks

WASHINGTON, D.C., August 9, 2011 | Jill Strait, Spencer Pederson or Crystal Feldman (202-225-2761)
On Wednesday, August 24th, 2011, at 9:00 a.m. the House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will hold an oversight hearing entitled ­­­­­­­ “American Jobs and Energy Security: Domestic Oil Shale the Status of Research, Regulation and Roadblocks.” This hearing will be held at the Grand Junction Civic Center 250 N 5th Street, Grand Junction, Colorado.

“Oil shale on federal lands is the largest known concentration of oil shale in the world -- what the U.S. Geological Survey estimates to be the equivalent of 800 billion barrels of recoverable oil. If responsibly developed, it could meet U.S. demand for oil for the next century. This field hearing will help us understand the regulatory roadblocks to accessing this energy. Western energy is one key to putting Americans back to work and growing our economy,” said Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources Chairman Doug Lamborn (CO-05).

“To help drive economic recovery we must expand energy exploration, embrace an all-of-the-above approach to energy development, and reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil. Through this hearing I hope to shed light on some of the opportunities we have to jump start responsible production of our oil shale reserves, and find solutions to spur on job creation in Colorado and across the nation,” said Rep. Scott Tipton (CO-03).

WHO: Energy and Mineral Resources Chairman
Doug Lamborn;
Rep. Scott Tipton;
and other possible Members.

WHAT: Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources
Oversight Field Hearing on: “American Jobs and Energy Security: Domestic Oil Shale the Status of Research, Regulation and Roadblocks.”
Witnesses to be announced.

WHEN: Wednesday , August 24, 2011
9:00 A.M. MDT

WHERE: Grand Junction Civic Center
250 N. 5th Street
Grand Junction, Colorado

Background:

  • The largest known deposits of oil shale are located in a 16,000-square mile area in the Green River formation in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming.
  • According to USGS estimates, the region may hold more than 1.5 trillion barrels of oil – six times Saudi Arabia’s proven resources, and enough to provide the United States with energy for the next 200 years.
  • Over 350,000 jobs would be created by the development of our oil shale resources (Management Information Systems 2/06).

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