Colorado Democrats have introduced a bill in the State Legislature that would require hydraulically fractured oil and gas wells to be set back at least 1,000 feet from any school or residence.
Colorado oil and gas regulators Monday defended what critics claim are watered-down hydraulic fracturing chemical disclosure rules, arguing the new regulations can be fine-tuned later to add more public health and environmental protections if necessary.
Most of the criticism thus far of Colorado’s proposed changes to rules governing hydraulic fracturing chemical disclosure – and the vast majority of online comments – has centered on the so-called “trade secret” loophole that would allow oil and gas companies to obtain exemptions from disclosing certain chemicals for proprietary reasons.
Critics of a draft Colorado rule to compel oil and gas companies to divulge chemicals used in the controversial hydraulic fracturing process will have some extra time to file comments online after the state’s website was taken down for “security-related emergency maintenance.”
Western Slope gas-drilling activist Lisa Bracken, citing parallels between her infamous case and an EPA probe of groundwater contamination in Pavillion, Wyo., says both incidents should be considered at a hydraulic fracturing chemical disclosure hearing in Denver next month.
A Boulder-based conservation group is pushing for much stronger language in a draft rule by the state of Colorado requiring oil and gas companies to disclose chemicals used in the controversial drilling practice called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
Colorado oil and gas regulators are poised to set a dubious record next week when nearly $1 million in fines will be levied against a company for essentially abandoning eight gas wells in Rio Blanco County. But state officials never expect to see a penny from the now-bankrupt operator.
Western Slope oil and gas watchdog groups this week questioned whether the new board members appointed to the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) last week by Gov. John Hickenlooper will lean too heavily toward industry and Front Range concerns.
The debate over the health of the natural gas industry will shape the 2010 campaign for the governor’s office, key seats in the state legislature and even local-level county commissioner races. Unsurprisingly, there are fundamental disagreements about what is happening on the ground in gas country.
Environmental activists are calling on Colorado officials to require oil and gas companies to chemically tag the fluids used in hydraulic fracturing, an increasingly controversial natural gas drilling process. Many suspect that “fracking” may be contaminating ground water and chemical tags would make it possible for regulators to identify the source of any contamination. The idea is a hot topic among those favoring increased federal oversight of the process, but industry officials won’t even discuss the idea, and state regulators say it’s barely on their radar screens.
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