LANSING, MI (AP)-- Michigan officials have decided not to allow oil or gas companies to drill beneath land in the Hartwick Pines State Park.
Michigan Department of Natural Resources Director Keith Creagh said Thursday the department won't put the mineral rights up for lease during its annual October auction. The Crawford County park had been listed as leasable non-development, meaning companies could drill but couldn't build on the park's surface. Creagh says it will be reclassified to non-leasable.
Creagh says the Hartwick family donated the land to the state in 1927 to preserve the parks' surface and sub-surface.
The Michigan Environmental Council applauded the decision to protect the old-growth forest. Other environmental groups had also raised concerns about drilling potentially disturbing park visitors.
The state's twice-yearly auction is scheduled for October 29.