Rep. Jared Polis hears from Boulder County constituents concerned about fracking

By John Fryar Longmont Times-Call 

LONGMONT -- Several eastern Boulder County residents upset by the oil and gas wells being drilled hundreds of feet away from their doorsteps got a sympathetic ear from U.S. Rep. Jared Polis on Wednesday afternoon.

Local, state and federal levels of government should all have roles in protecting people from the potential environmental and health risks of drilling, Boulder Democrat Polis said during a visit to a 2.7-acre farmstead southeast of Longmont, on East Boulder County Line Road.

"This was a dream for my family," said Rod Brueske, who bought that onetime Boulder County open space property for $195,000 and took possession of it last May.

Brueske said that with existing wells in his neighborhood, and new wells being drilled across the road, in Weld County -- along with those that Brueske fears may proliferate on the farmland now surrounding his property -- that dream is threatening to turn into a nightmare.

He said that besides having "a long-term health concern for my family" about the air and water hazards from wells, "our property values have been canned."

If that's not enough, Brueske said, he charged that the fleets of heavy trucks conveying fluids and equipment used in hydraulic fracturing -- injecting those fluids to free up deep underground oil and gas deposits -- are destroying East County Line Road and other rural roads in the area.

Brueske and several of his neighbors complained to the congressman that they'd gotten little notice, if any, before drilling began.

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Boulder County imposes moratorium on oil, gas drilling

Times Call

By John Fryar

Posted: 02/02/2012

 

BOULDER -- Boulder County commissioners on Thursday imposed a temporary moratorium on accepting and processing new applications for oil and gas drilling operations in any unincorporated areas of the county.

The six-month moratorium, which took effect immediately and is to remain in place until Aug. 2, is intended to give the county staff time to study the adequacy of Boulder County's current land use regulations as they apply to oil and gas development, and to propose possible amendments to those existing local rules.

"I think we all agree that we have some sense of urgency around this," said Commissioner Deb Gardner, who said the time-out on processing new drilling applications is needed to make sure Boulder County is doing everything a local government legally can do, in "protecting the people and the environment."

Gardner and Commissioners Cindy Domenico and Will Toor unanimously voted Thursday to adopt a resolution imposing the temporary moratorium resolution and to tentatively set a March 1 public hearing on the issues associated with oil and gas drilling, particularly those involving the potential impacts of horizontal drilling and of hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking" -- the process of injecting a mixture of sand, water and chemicals into rock formations in order to free up hard-to-reach oil and natural gas deposits.

"This is a time to take a breath and step back," said Domenico, chairwoman of the Board of County Commissioners.



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Boulder County is about to get fracked

Food And Water Watch

There are proposals to frack on dozens of sites throughout Boulder County, including on seven open space areas. Fracking won't preserve these open spaces; it is an industrial process that can contaminate water, cause earthquakes and result in significant noise and air pollution—all on land paid for with your tax dollars.

Tell the Boulder County Commissioners to ban fracking now! HERE

Boulder County commissioner candidates back drilling moratorium

By John Fryar Longmont Times-Call


BOULDER -- If it's legally possible, Boulder County should impose an immediate moratorium on exploratory drilling that uses hydraulic fracturing to free up oil and gas deposits, all six Democratic candidates for county commissioners' seats agreed Saturday.


That time-out would allow the county to study the possible negative impacts of "fracking" and to craft local regulations to mitigate those impacts, the would-be county commissioners said during a candidates' forum sponsored by the Boulder County Democratic Party.


Elise Jones, one of a trio of Democrats vying for the District 1 seat on the Board of County Commissioners that's up for election next year, said that if she could ban fracking entirely, she'd do so, because of the process' potential for polluting water as well as the huge volumes of water required in the procedure.


Unfortunately, Jones said, local governments such as counties are limited in what they can do to restrict such oil and gas drilling practices. But she suggested the county could be more aggressive in establishing conditions for such wells, including requiring larger setbacks from reservoirs and neighboring homes and requiring the drilling companies to use non-toxic chemicals when they pump pressurized mixtures of water, sand and chemicals underground.


Rich Lopez, another of the District 1 commissioner candidates, said that in setting new drilling rules while a moratorium is in place, Boulder County officials should "regulate anything we can to slow or stop" hydraulic fracturing -- including regulations limiting the hours in which the drilling can occur and limiting access to the well site.


Garry Sanfacon, the third Democrat vying for the District 1 county board seat that's up for election next year, went a step further. He said that during a moratorium, Boulder County should develop oil and gas drilling regulations that consider the drilling companies' impacts on county roads, nearby communities and water -- rules, he said, "that would make it virtually unfeasible" for such drilling companies "to work in our county."



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