Photos courtesy of Alan Wilson (left), EcoFlight (center), John Amos


Welcome to the Upper Green River Valley of western Wyoming. Lying at the southern edge of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,
the Valley provides critical range for wintering wildlife -- including elk, pronghorn, mule deer and sage grouse -- and is home
to the longest big-game migration route in the lower 48 states.

The habitat rich Upper Green also holds significant energy resources, with abundant pockets of natural gas locked deep below the
surface of the valley. The valley now produces more than $3 billion in natural gas each year and accounts for nearly a quarter of all
Wyoming production.

With this placemark file, you can learn about the valley's drilling operations, investigate some of the environmental concerns that
accompany gas and oil development, and see for yourself the impact that drilling has on the landscape.


There are two ways you can learn about the issues facing the Upper Green River Valley:

Download the 5 MB Placemark Series.

Watch the ten-minute companion video made using Google Earth: 'The Upper Green River Valley: A View from Above'.

Produced by .

This is a superb and very powerful presentation, Matthew. It uses GE and the movie program very well. I have spent many summer vacations in the Tetons and the Greater Yellowstone area. It needs to stay as an example of wildness and wilderness. Thanks for the great work. I believe work like this shows environmental degradation, real and potential, better than anything else can. This rates and is being stickied to the top of the forum. I hope this brings much attention to the plight of the region and helps to form a positive solution for the environment.

Matthew,

It's hard to put together a reply when one is speechless, so I'll do my best.

This is probably one of the best uses of Google Earth I have seen. The combination of great presentation and information lends this file perfectly to Google Earth and it's users.

The file encourages thought and consideration about the environment in which we live and I think this is a great starting point. And as Hill said; will hopefully provide a positive solution.

I have sent this around Google, so the people there can enjoy your great work.

Congratulations!!

Thanks,
Phil

Very nicely done Your use of GE really makes for a great presentation

5 From me

Excellent work indeed! Google Earth Blog story will be forthcoming.

The quality bar for geographic content was easily just doubled. This is superb work, congratulations.

This also provides a nice case study for us on how to make the KML tools and user interface better - there should be no need to instruct people to modify their setttings, for instance. This is something that should be improved in our code.

just can follow the others:

unbelievable post!
great effort!
nice purpose!
5*s from me too!

thanks,

g

Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times

Quote:

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A [pronghorn antelope] stands in front of a oil derrick 30 miles south of Pinedale, Wyo. The Bush administration has highlighted the Pinedale Anticline as a model for oil and gas exploration.

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The Los Angeles Times published this story today:

Quote:

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Interior Department sued over Wyoming drilling
As President Bush called for increased oil and gas drilling in the Rocky Mountain West and offshore, an environmental group launched a legal battle Wednesday against the Interior Department, saying the agency broke its promise to limit environmental damage from natural gas and oil development on the Pinedale Anticline, one of the country's top reserves.

The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, a nonprofit coalition of hunting, fishing and other organizations, filed suit against the Interior Department and the Bureau of Land Management in U.S. District Court in Washington. The suit alleges the BLM, a division of the Interior Department, "failed unequivocally" to comply with its plans to monitor and mitigate the effects of gas and oil drilling on wildlife across the Anticline and violated the National Environmental Policy Act and Federal Land Policy and Management Act.

The project plan formulated eight years ago for the Anticline called for the development of about 700 well pads over a 10- to 15-year period. It included procedures to monitor and evaluate the effects of development. The suit alleges that a working group set up for that task held its first meeting in 2004, and has not met consistently thereafter.

"They haven't been following the processes that they put in place that would address impacts to the natural resources of the area and would comply with their obligations under federal law," said Katie McKalip, a spokeswoman for the conservation group.

Teresa Howes, a spokeswoman for the BLM, said she had not seen the lawsuit and could not directly address it, but added that the agency had been following procedures in the project plan.

A 2006 report showed the deer population declined 46% since 2000, the suit said. The study was industry-funded and performed by Western EcoSystems Technology Inc.

The suit does not ask the BLM to stop production in the Anticline. "We're not opposed to public lands' energy development," McKalip said, "as long as it adheres to efforts to sustain fish and wildlife resources throughout the course of development activities."


The lawsuit comes at a time when three companies, Shell Exploration & Production, Ultra Resources, and Questar Exploration and Production, have asked to have seasonal restrictions removed to allow for expanded year-round drilling. Rules require development be shut down during wildlife breeding and migration.

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Source

We just got home from a 2 week vacation in Wyoming and Montana a couple weeks ago. I learned so much and really soaked up every bit of knowledge I could from the locals.

You can't leave that area and not recognize how fragile the earth is. It definitely changes the way you live day to day.

Lou C