29 Oct Action Alert! COGCC Coming To Paonia Nov 2

The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) is holding a listening session on November 2^ndfrom 2-3:30pm at Paonia Town Hall. This is the first time the COGCC is visiting the North Fork Valley, and a unique opportunity for our community to engage with the Commission on critical protections of public health, safety, welfare, the environment and wildlife. This visit is the direct result of our engagement in the rulemakings to implement SB19-181, the historic oil and gas reform act enacted in May 2019.

This is a general listening session for the COGCC to hear from the community regarding the impacts of oil and gas development and current regulations.

To speak at the listening session you must register before 9am on Monday, November 1 here.

While the current COGCC rules are more protective than they have ever been in the past, the COGCC does not consider climate change, has yet to exercise its authority to deny a permit, and the draft Financial Assurance rules released on October 8, 2021 do little to ensure that taxpayers do not absorb the costs of offsite impacts of oil and gas operations (for example landslides, earthquakes, or water contamination) or the regulatory obligations of operators to plug wells and reclaim land when a well stops producing.

Here is the agenda for the COGCC’s West Slope tour.

Click here for guidance and topics for public comments.