Feds advance plan to open 2,800 acres of Ohio’s Wayne National Forest to fracking
The sale covers 41 parcels and could bring fracking to the forest for the first time, pending remaining federal permits.
- On Friday, the Bureau of Land Management announced a lease sale scheduled for Sept. 15 of 41 parcels totaling 2,840 acres in Wayne National Forest, bringing fracking to the forest for the first time.
- GOP President Donald Trump's administration has aggressively pursued opening public lands to energy development, including efforts in Alaska and Utah while rolling back procedural timelines around lease sales.
- Mike Chadsey, a spokesman for the Ohio Oil and Gas Association, said the process is "deliberate, transparent, and built on years of environmental review," while a 30-day public protest period opened today and closes August 17, 2026.
- Wendy Park, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, argued that fracking threatens wildlife, including the Indiana bat, and would introduce light pollution, noise, and truck traffic into the recreational area.
- Meanwhile, the state of Ohio has opened about 22,000 acres of its state parks and wildlife areas to oil and gas companies since 2024; the Wayne leases sit near Marietta and Parkersburg, West Virginia.
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17 Articles
Associated Press News
Feds advance plan to open 2,800 acres of Ohio’s Wayne National Forest to fracking
The U.S.
Feds advance plan to open 2,800 acres of Ohio’s Wayne National Forest to fracking - WXXV News 25
By JAKE ZUCKERMAN/Signal Ohio The federal government took a major step forward Friday toward opening more than 2,800 acres of Ohio’s only national forest to oil and gas development. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced a lease sale scheduled for Sept. 15 of 41 parcels of land in the Wayne National Forest totaling 2,840 acres. Although some bureaucratic hurdles remain, a lease sale brings fracking the forest for the first time – the sub…
Federal Government Advances Plan to Open 2,800 Acres of Wayne National Forest to Fracking
ATHENS, Ohio — The federal government took a major step forward Friday toward opening more than 2,800 acres of Ohio’s only national forest to oil and gas development, drawing immediate praise from the energy industry and sharp criticism from environmental advocates. The U.S. Bureau of Land Manage
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