This programmatic statement deals with several levels of potential decisions which can lead to DOE action to develop the oil shale resources of its 35,000 - acre Naval Oil Shale Reserves in Northwest Colorado. These decisions may become imminent due to the need to the need to meet the President's 1990 domestic goal of 4.5 million additional barrels of liquid fuels produced or conserved. This is a candidate site for a contingency oil shale development venture. This means that under current DOE policy the Reserve is likely to be opened to development only if there are significant delays shortfalls in private industry's effort to launch commercial-scale-facilities in the are. It compares the environmental impacts from the range of potential production from this Reserve with impacts from additional development of other liquid fuel options which might have to provide an equivalent amount of shale oil by 1990. These options include coal liquefaction, biomass, and increased conservation. Second, this EIS presents an environmental and financial impact analysis relating five generalized development ventures ranging from a low to a high level of government funding and participation. Developing the Naval Oil Shale Reserves in Colorado to commercial-scale production of 50,000 barrels per day is estimated to have the following gross impacts: alteration of 3 percent of the total Reserve land; annual consumption of 4,624 to 17,500 acre feet of water, depending on process chosen; yearly emissions of 361 tons of So2, 3,641 tons of NOx, 656 tons of CO, 951 tons of particulate, 262 tons of HC; and increasing the are population by a total of 7,500 people. A specific project EIS, which would discuss environmental impacts in detail, would precede any development action by DOE.