Editorial: Saying no to more drilling

Thursday, July 27, 2006 | 7:40 a.m.

Within the Carson National Forest in New Mexico is a spectacularly beautiful region that Spanish explorers called Valle Vidal, or Valley of Life. Its 101,000 acres were donated to the "people of the United States" by Pennzoil Co. in 1982.

The House on Monday approved a bill that would ban oil and gas drilling in this prized recreational area of conifer trees, rolling meadows, streams and extensive wildlife. The Senate should do the same.

The legislation may be part of a trend in which an eclectic coalition of private groups band together to protect wild areas from drilling, The Washington Post reported.

That longtime Republican allies of the energy industry are increasingly siding with these vocal coalitions as Election Day draws near may also be part of a trend. For instance, Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., a powerful voice for energy exploration, is supporting legislation that would thwart new federal drilling leases in the Rocky Mountain Front, the Post noted.

And under fire from a Democratic challenger, drilling proponent Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., agreed to co-sponsor the Valle Vidal bill.

We hope that the protection of Valle Vidal suggests that policymakers might begin dropping their mad searches for quick-fix energy solutions, which often seem to focus on destroying precious lands.

Energy companies already have access to much of the public land in the Rocky Mountain West, and the Bush administration has rushed to issue drilling permits, the Post noted. But even in this long, hot summer of high gasoline prices, Middle East unrest and threatened blackouts, there is no unprecedented emergency that demands we rip apart the likes of Valle Vidal, where elk have thrived for thousands of years.

Among the alternatives to drilling are a new national commitment to conservation, untapped renewable energy sources and new, fast-developing energy technologies. We have not reached such a crisis in America that we should forever spoil the nation's hallowed outdoor sanctuaries.