Interior Secretary Gale Norton wasted no time getting to the point. Not a month into her new job, Norton is already talking about lifting bans on oil and gas drilling in environmentally critical areas.

There is no reason to be so hasty.

In a Monday interview, Norton told The Associated Press that the Bush administration would consider drilling in now-restricted areas as part of a review of the nation’s undeveloped energy resources. She specifically mentioned the Overthrust Belt, a geological formation that spans portions of Montana, Wyoming, Idaho and Utah, and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

So far, however, the justifications she is offering are weak.

The Overthrust Belt is a geological formation that runs roughly from Yellowstone National Park north to Glacier National Park. It includes parts of the Lewis and Clark National Forest that were put off limits to drilling by the U.S. Forest Service in 1997.

Drilling was banned there for good reason. The area is important for its wildlife and wildlands, and is popular with hunters, hikers and campers. The Forest Service supervisor in charge told the High Country News that when considering the ban she was struck by how many people, "expressed heartfelt emotions about a place they considered special."

Besides, according to the industry’s own figures, the ban on drilling affects only 4 percent of the nation’s gas reserves.

The idea of opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is even shakier. Norton acknowledged that her side has yet to make its case for drilling there – and if her attempt is any indication, the administration faces an uphill battle.

"In order to ensure that jobs are available, that our dynamic economy continues, that elderly people in California are not having to worry about keeping their homes warm, we’re going to have to examine how to look at Arctic production in an environmentally friendly way," Norton said.

Poppycock. Whatever is happening with America’s economy, it is not because of an oil shortage – and homes in California are heated with gas or electricity. Only a tiny fraction of California’s electricity comes from oil and if drilling in the Arctic were authorized today any elderly Californians counting on ANWR oil for their energy needs would freeze in the dark.