How close to Diamond Fork Campground should an oil well befi

State and environmental groups gathered in Spanish Fork Canyon on Thursday hoping to bring attention to the proximity of oil, trout and camping.

Uinta National Forest is now deciding where to allow oil and gas leases in the forest after 37 such leases were granted in the areas of Diamond Fork Canyon and Strawberry Reservoir in 2004 and 2005.

Trout Unlimited, a national advocacy group that works to protect fish and fishing access, hosted a tour of Diamond Fork on Thursday, along with forest and Division of Wildlife Resources officials. A 45-day public comment period on a yet-to-be announced proposal about oil and gas drilling will begin in September.

Corey Fisher of Trout Unlimited urged residents to voice opinions about the issue now, before a formal proposal is completed. He stressed that Trout Unlimited is not opposed to gas and oil drilling in appropriate areas.

Based on deer and elk range, stream habitat areas, viewscapes, slopes, wetlands and other considerations, Trout Unlimited has created a map of the forest indicating where the group would like to see oil and gas drilling allowed.

According to the map, most of the forest would be closed to leases. Some areas could be opened on strict guidelines, and one small area opened under standard guidelines.

An oil and gas lease has already been sold on part of Diamond Fork Campground and nearby undeveloped campsites.

Theoretically, drilling could happen on the edge of the campgrounds, though forest officials said they have the power to require the drilling to be up to 200 meters away. They can also require drilling to be 200 meters away from Diamond Fork Creek, where Trout Unlimited officials said drilling and building the roads needed to access the drilling areas could put mud into the stream, threatening the endangered Bonneville cutthroat trout, which is the state fish.

Trout Unlimited would like the 200-meter standard changed to 500 meters, and would also like no new roads allowed in some areas of the forest. District Ranger Doug Jones said the public must let its voice be heard on the issue of how closely trout, oil and camping should be mixed.

"We all consume gas and oil. That is why we need to do this," he said of the leases, noting he will work to protect the forest.

Though technically a gas company could apply to drill a well right next to the campground, that is unlikely to happen, he said.

Public and private money totaling $34 million has been spent in Diamond Fork and around Strawberry Reservoir to restore habitat for the fish and other species. Utah County residents should oppose any plan to allow oil and gas drilling that could threaten that investment, said Paul Dremann of Trout Unlimited.

"It is very disturbing to think of the potential damage," he said. "It's spooky to us what could happen."

Last fall, state wildlife officials, working with Trout Unlimited, poisoned non-native brown trout along a 22-mile stretch of Diamond Fork Creek and planted 20,000 2-inch Bonnevilles, protecting them from the aggressive brown trout with a 5-foot boulder barrier in the creek.

On Thursday officials visited the barrier and said studies show the Bonnevilles are thriving, with 400 to 600 of the fish now living along each mile of the 22-mile section. The fish have grown to be between four and six inches long and should spawn next year.

Closed to fishing since this spring, the creek could be reopened for fishing on Jan. 1, 2008, said Richard Hepworth of the Division of Wildlife Resources. Another 20,000 Bonnevilles will be planted in the creek this fall to help the population.

For information on the Uinta National Forest oil and gas study, visit www.fs.fed.us/r4/uinta/projects/projects/oil-gas/.

For information on the Trout Unlimited proposal, e-mail cfisher@tu.org.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page D1.