In Badger Two-Medicine, last remaining leases canceled

The final two oil and gas leases on the Badger-Two Medicine region of the Helena and Lewis and Clark National Forest were canceled on Wednesday, the Department of Interior announced.

The Bureau of Land Management notified J.G. Kluthe Trust of Nebraska and W.A. Moncrief Jr. of Texas of the cancellations of the final two leases in the area. Kluthe was refunded about $30,500 for its lease and Moncrief about $27,800. In letters to both companies, the Bureau of Land Management said the leases were improperly issued back in the 1980s.

Combined, both leases were about 11,622 acres.

The cancellation of the two leases comes on the heels on the cancellation of 16 leases in the region last year by the DOI.

One former leaseholder, the Solonex company, is challenging the cancellation of its lease in the Hall Creek drainage in federal court. Hall Creek is in the northeast portion of the Badger Two Medicine area.

The Badger Two Medicine is immediately south of Glacier National Park along Marias Pass. It’s considered sacred ground by the Blackfeet Tribe and is a land of rolling hills, trout streams and home to a large herd of about 800 elk. A bill passed several years ago by then Sen. Max Baucus bans the creation of any new leases in the region.

The lease cancellation this week mirrors the agreement reached with Devon Energy in November 2016. The departure of the two leaseholders from the Badger-Two Medicine marks a major milestone, as the last of the leases have now been removed.

In recent years, both the U.S. government and the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council have negotiated with leaseholders to remove the threat of oil and gas development from the Badger-Two Medicine. Leaseholders have been offered tax incentives, a buy-back of all sunk costs, cash payments, lease options in other areas, and even pre-drilled wells on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in return for retiring their Badger-Two Medicine leases

“We are proud to have worked alongside the Blackfeet Nation and the U.S. Forest Service throughout this process to roll back decades-old leases and reinforce the importance of developing resources in the right way and the right places.” said Department of Interior Secretary Sally Jewell. “The cancellation of the final two leases in the rich cultural and natural Badger-Two Medicine Area will ensure it is protected for future generations.”

Conservation groups who have worked closely with the tribe, the Forest Service, the companies and the DOI were pleased with announcement, which comes just as the Obama administration is about to leave office.

“Today’s final action reflects the wisdom and forward-thinking of business owners, tribal leaders, elected officials and individuals who traveled different paths to come to the same solution for protecting this priceless landscape,” said Michael Jamison, Glacier program manager for National Parks Conservation Association. “The actions by the Blackfeet Nation and private interests to ensure the previous leaseholders were made whole again also demonstrate grace under extreme pressure to preserve these wildlands.”

The Blackfeet last year indicated they would like to graze bison on the Badger-Two Medicine in the future.

The bison are descendants of a an original Blackfeet herd of bison that spent years in Elk Island Park in Canada. The Blackfeet bought more than 80 of them back last year and now want to graze them on the Badger as well as Glacier National Park.

“The Badger-Two Medicine is a powerful cultural region,” said Harry Barnes, chairman of the Blackfeet Nation Tribal Business Council. “We’ve lived for 30 years under the threat that it might be industrialized, and we’re extremely grateful that this cloud is finally lifted. This area is like a church to our people, and retiring the last of the leases is a tremendous step toward permanent protection of the Badger-Two Medicine.”