Anyone who thought a state-formed group evaluating setback rules for hydraulic fracturing would come to amicable consensus has been reading too many “happily ever after” stories. Environmentalists and industry representatives are simply too far apart, and it was not to be.
Still, months of meetings and testimony since a “setback stakeholder group” was created early this year to reduce friction between Front Range communities and the industry have been productive. And, as a result, the director of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, Matt Lepore, announced last week that his agency is moving to revise drilling rules in the coming months, with a draft likely much sooner.
We don’t expect the proposed rules to amount to the last word on fracking regulations, which have evolved in recent years and will no doubt continue to do so. But the latest ideas appear to be a positive step balancing the interests of all sides.
Those who would like to stop fracking altogether of course won’t be placated. But the vast majority (we hope) of Coloradans who recognize the importance — and, yes, the relative safety — of modern drilling techniques should be pleased with the responsiveness of state officials.
The draft rules apparently will not increase the present setback minimum of 350 feet in populated areas. But they will include tougher requirements relating to noise, operating hours, venting, industrial pits and traffic, among other things.
As Lepore told the stakeholder group at its most recent meeting, “Look, if you were asked if you wanted a well within 350 feet of your backyard, for me the answer’s no. I think most of you would say the same thing. But for me it’s not because I’m afraid I might get sick or it might harm my children. It’s because I don’t want to live with 24-hour lighting and banging. And that’s what these rules are largely aimed at. That’s what the existing rules were adopted for, for the most part.”
Meanwhile, any oil or gas well proposed within 700 feet of a school, hospital, nursing home or other high-occupancy building would have to first undergo the public scrutiny of a commission hearing. Currently, Lepore tells us, 99 percent of such drilling permits are approved without a hearing.
Until we see the specifics of the rules, we of course won’t know how meaningful they actually are. For example, what will be the maximum decibel level imposed on fracking jobs between 350 and 700 feet from a home? And how late will crews be allowed to work?
But we think the commission staff is on the right track, and that the changes will consolidate Colorado’s position as a leader in enlightened fracking regulation.
