Oregon Public Broadcasting

Oregon's environmental groups are cautiously optimistic Wednesday after the Obama administration announced changes to oil and gas drilling on federal lands. Kristian Foden-Vencil reports.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said revisions at the Bureau of Land Management were needed because the Bush Administration allowed industry to do whatever it wanted.

Ken Salazar: "The Department was essentially a handmaiden of the oil and gas industry. We brought that to an end because the resources that the department oversees are resources that belong to the American tax payer. And as they're developed we need to make sure that  we're protecting the tax payer, we're protecting American citizens and we're protecting the treasured landscapes that they care so much about."

The new rules aim to increase public discussion and to allow more on-the-ground analysis.

Asante Riverwind with the Oregon Sierra Club is hopeful.

Asante Riverwind: "BLM has a long history of not following through on direct oversight so it's encouraging to see requirements that would bring them out on the ground and taking a look at actual sites."

Oil and gas companies have complained the new administration has dramatically slowed down new leases.