The implementation of Senate Bill 181, which Gov. Jared Polis signed in April, threatens a recession in western Garfield County, according to County Commissioner Tom Jankovsky.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are really concerned about (SB) 181 and what it\u2019s doing,\u201d Jankovsky said during Monday’s board of county commissioners meeting. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to create a recession in this area in Western Garfield County, and it (will be) created by the governor and the legislature,” he said. “There\u2019s no reason to have a recession. It\u2019s very concerning to us.”<\/p>\n
The public, industry and local leaders have a chance to comment on the new rules governing oil and gas permits next week.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Aug. 21, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) will hold a public comment session<\/a> at the Hotel Colorado in Glenwood Springs to discuss a variety of proposed rules. <\/p>\n The main thrust of SB181 is to shift the mission of COGCC from \u201cfostering\u201d the oil and gas production to \u201cregulating\u201d the industry, prioritizing impacts on community health and the environment.<\/p>\n The new law states the COGCC director may delay granting any permit under certain conditions. Those conditions, published July 16, include drill sites near schools, neighborhoods and \u2014 most importantly to western Garfield County \u2014 floodplains, critical water resource areas and sensitive wildlife areas.<\/p>\n Industry groups fear that SB181 would effectively turn into a moratorium on oil and gas permits.<\/p>\n The rulemaking process is ongoing, but what concerns the commissioners is the lack of new permits approved this year in the county. <\/p>\n Kirby Wynn, the Garfield County\u2019s oil and gas liaison, told Those three approvals are far from what oil and gas companies \u201cwould consider a sustainable flow of permits to sustain operations and capital flow investment,\u201d Wynn said.<\/p>\n Across the state, COGCC has approved relatively few permits in 2019, since Polis appointed Jeff Robbins director of the COGCC in January.<\/p>\n \u201cThe spirit of 181 and the intent of the law was not to put COGCC is working with the industry on their highest-priority permit applications, and approvals are starting to come through, Castle said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re working to make sure that we are being a strong, good One person concerned about the slow trickle of permits is Mike Rynearson, of Caerus Oil and Gas. He said it would be difficult for his company to operate in the future if the current processes continue.<\/p>\n \u201cThe uncertainty is an issue when you\u2019re trying to do planning and put together that much capital,\u201d Rynearson told the commissioners in an operations update Monday. <\/p>\n \u201cWithout that certainty in place, I can\u2019t tell you what our plans would be, but it would be significantly less than it is this year,” Rynearson said. <\/p>\n Caerus reduced its operational plans by 34 percent this year, but without a stream of new drilling permits in the pipeline, it\u2019s difficult to continue to support the operations, Rynearson said. <\/p>\n Caerus employs 128 people out of its Parachute location.<\/p>\n Garfield County and many industry voices are engaging in the rulemaking process. The goal, Jankovsky said, is to point out \u201cthat things are different on the Western Slope\u201d compared to the Front Range.<\/p>\n On the other hand, SB 181 proponents say it gives local communities more power to oppose new oil and gas developments.<\/p>\nA New Mission<\/h4>\n
\nthe commissioners Monday that only three drilling permits have been approved in
\nGarfield County this year, and they came in last week.<\/p>\n
\na moratorium or a stop to (new permits),\u201d COGCC spokesperson Megan Castle said.<\/p>\n
\npartner with industry, and at the same time doing that in a responsible
\nmanner,\u201d she said.<\/p>\nConcerns<\/h4>\n