In this report, the paleontological content and sensitivities of potentially affected geologic units within the study area for the Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resource Management Plan Amendments to Address Land Use Allocations in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) are reviewed, evaluated, and summarized. On the basis of the results of the analysis, programmatic-level recommendations are made. As defined in the scope of the PEIS, commercially viable oil shale deposits are contained within Eocene-age rocks of the Green River Formation, which are widely distributed in the greater Green River Basin in southwestern Wyoming and northwestern Colorado, the Piceance Creek Basin in northwestern Colorado, and the Uinta Basin in northeastern Utah.1 Eleven Special Tar Sand Areas (as designated by the Secretary of the Interior) are located within the Uinta Basin in northeastern Utah in Cretaceous-age rocks of the Mesaverde Group, and Eocene-age rocks of the Wasatch Formation, Douglas Creek and Parachute Creek members of the Green River Formation, and the Uinta Formation. In portions of east-central and southeastern Utah, tar sands deposits are contained within rocks of the Permian-age White Rim Sandstone of the Cutler Group and Kaibab Limestone, and in Triassic-age rocks of the Hoskinnini, Black Dragon, and Torrey members of the Moenkopi Formation and the Shinarump Member of the Chinle Formation. Numerous other sedimentary rock units overlie or occur in close stratigraphic proximity to the units containing oil shale and tar sands, and these could potentially be impacted during commercial extraction of hydrocarbon resources.
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