Tester: It’s time to protect Badger-Two Medicine

(U.S. Senate)-Senator Jon Tester today issued the following statement after Federal District Court Judge Richard Leon ordered the U.S. Forest Service to establish a timeline for determining the future of conservation in the Badger-Two Medicine adjacent to Glacier National Park:

“There are certain places in this world where we just shouldn’t drill. The Badger-Two Medicine has historical, cultural, and recreational significance that you simply can’t put a price tag on. It’s time the Forest Service recognizes the consensus of the folks who call this area home and protects this sacred land for future generations.”

In 1984, a drilling moratorium was put in place to prevent oil and gas drilling in the Badger-Two Medicine. Since then, all but 18 of the original 47 drilling leases granted in the area have been voluntarily relinquished.

In March, Tester urged the Obama Administration to cancel all remaining oil and gas leases in the Badger-Two Medicine.