Plan Would Allow Drilling Near River Forest Proposal Opens South Fork To Oil, Gas Exploration

A new Targhee National Forest plan would open the South Fork of the Snake River to oil and gas drilling, much to the consternation of conservationists and some Idaho Fish and Game officials.

“The document as it stands is going to generate some serious controversy, ” said Fish and Game’s Bob Martin.

The document is the “preferred alternative” in Targhee’s draft environmental impact statement for oil and gas leasing on the 1.8-million-acre forest.

The current forest master plan, adopted in 1985, does not allow any oil and gas drilling in the Forest Service portion of the river corridor from Conant Valley to Heise. Now the agency is backing off that restriction because it says drilling could be conducted in an environmentally friendly way.

The plan calls for at least a quarter-mile buffer from the banks. That means oil and gas deposits beneath the river bottoms could only be accessed by angling in from drill pads outside the buffer zone.

“The net result to the environment is the same” as no drilling at all, said Targhee’s John Pruess.

Not everyone buys it.

“It flies in the face of the public’s interest,” said Greater Yellowstone Coalition’s Marv Hoyt.

In October, Hoyt was one of only three citizens who attended a public hearing on the document.

“This is a popular recreation river. It has high-quality water, high-quality fisheries. To allow oil and gas leasing along the banks of the South Fork, where a (spill) could pollute the river is just completely unacceptable,” he said.

Almost a quarter million people visit the South Fork annually, according to the BLM.

Pruess said the 440 yard-setback is only a minimum, and no drilling would be allowed in the flood plain or any riparian areas on the forest, which would be enough to protect the river’s scenic character.