Photo credit: New York Times
In spite of a pending lawsuit by Boulder County, an oil and gas company is asking the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) for permits to build fracking wells near Erie, on land that abuts the Panama Reservoir and its wildlife habitat. Crestone Peak Resources has submitted three permit applications for proposed wells near the intersection of Route 287 and Highway 52 (Mineral Rd). The COGCC is accepting comments on these permit applications, and we have until December 6th to tell them to reject these dangerous proposals. Please take action today by contacting the COGCC via the links below.
There are three separate applications: CPR Unit 35H-P269, CPR Unit 3H-A169, CPR Unit 36H-M269, each with separate comment pages. We encourage you to comment on each of them. The overall scope of Crestone’s drilling plan would represent the “largest and most intensive development in the state,” according to Boulder County’s assessment.
Additionally, Boulder County says that “significant contract or lease issues exist that affect the Commission’s ability to approve” the applications for all three of these sites.
See below for more details about each of the applications.
- CPR Unit 35H-P269 (28 wells) and CPR Unit 36H-M269 (56 wells): These proposed wells lie on land on which Boulder County holds a conservation easement. Per Boulder County’s analysis of the law, Crestone Peak likely does not have the “necessary lease rights” to implement its drilling plans.
- CPR Unit 36H-M269: An “alternate” location for 56 wells, which Crestone proposed for the first time in the final draft of its Comprehensive Drilling Plan (CDP), short-circuiting the review process. If both these and CPR Unit 35H-P269 were approved and developed, there would be an unprecedented 84 wells very close to the Panama Reservoir, and the bald eagle nest nearby.
- CPR Unit 3H-A169 (56 wells): These wells lie on property that is owned by the County in fee, including the minerals, which are subject to leases that pre-existed the County’s ownership.
Per Boulder County’s assessment, “residents and wildlife…. living near these areas will experience truck traffic, noise, bright lights, odor and vibrations without respite for three years.” We can’t let our precious Boulder County land be turned into an industrial zone. Below are links to additional resources on this issue. Thank you for taking action!
Additional resources:
Map of proposed well locations (Attachment A to Crestone’s Comprehensive Drilling Plan),
Boulder County’s comments on Crestone’s Final Draft Comprehensive Drilling Plan, submitted to the COGGC.