Environmental group buys oil leases

An environmental group is buying back thousands of acres of oil leases in Wyoming.

The Trust for Public Land successfully raised the $8.75 million dollars needed to buy 58,000 acres of the Upper Hoback Casin from the Plains Exploration and Production Company.

The trust had until the final week of 2012 to raise the money, and did not reach that goal until the day before the deadline.

“The important thing in this project is really the community support,” said Chris Deming, a senior project manager with the Trust for Public Land. “The citizens of Wyoming have worked for 10 years on this project, and the Trust for Public Land is really proud to play this role, but the credit really goes to the citizens of Wyoming.”

The trust will retire all of the oil and gas leases.