Polis to Colorado Oil and Gas Association: "Stop Suing the Communities I Represent"
Posted on Dec 9, 2013 12:54pm PST
Colorado Congressman Jared Polis took quick action Wednesday (12/4) in
wake of news that the Colorado Oil and Gas Association, the industry's
powerful state lobbying group, was suing Fort Collins for passing a moratorium
and Lafayette for passing a full ban on hydraulic fracturing within city
limits. He sent a fiery letter to COGA President Tisha Schuller.
"Ms. Schuller," the letter begins. "Please stop suing the
communities I represent. Elections matter. In a democracy both sides get
to make their case and the people have their say. In the lead up to the
recent election, the Colorado Oil and Gas Association (COGA) made its
case by spending approximately $900,000 in an attempt to defeat the four
ballot measures to ban or extend drilling moratoria on the hydraulic fracturing
process ('fracking'). Still, the majority of Fort Collins, Boulder,
Lafayette and Broomfield voters chose to pass measures to extend drilling
moratoriums or fracking bans. ... I ask you to immediately withdraw your
lawsuits against Fort Collins and Lafayette. Colorado home rule communities
have held these rights for decades: the right to determine how their own
city or town will look and feel; the right to decide between an expanding
extractive industry and the value of their homes; and the right to balance
increased development with the health and quality of life of community
residents. Local governments have authority to regulate oil and gas land
use activities because oil and gas operations are matters of local concern
that directly involve the use of land and are an important issue for residents
and neighborhoods."
Polis' sympathies are professional and personal. As I explained in
an earlier posting, this summer and fall he tangled with Sundance Energy
drillers who set up a fracking operation opposite a Weld County home he
owns. A drill rig appeared overnight, across the road, in the scenic foothills
setting where the home is located. The experience was one shared by increasing
numbers of residents across Colorado's northern Front Range, where
natural gas boom-time extraction has encroached on residential areas nearly
unimpeded, drillers appearing to act with impunity.