Board of County Commissioners File Two Protests with COGCC
The two Protests are in regard to the Drilling and Spacing Unit applications submitted by 8 North LLC, a
subsidiary of Extraction Oil and Gas, LLC
Boulder County, Colo. -- Today, Monday, Oct. 16, the Boulder County Board of County Commissioners
filed two formal Protests with the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission
(COGCC) on the Drilling and Spacing Unit applications submitted by 8 North LLC,
a subsidiary of Extraction Oil and Gas, LLC. The filing of these applications
by 8 North on Sept. 11, is the first step in the state process for drilling in
a 1,280-acre area between Arapahoe and Baseline Roads at the far eastern edge
of the county along East County Line Road and a 2,720-acre area between Oxford
and Quail Roads also along East County Line Road.
The county filed two protest documents, one for each
proposed drilling area. The City of Lafayette joined with Boulder County on the
Protest for the southern drilling and spacing unit application as that area includes
a portion of the City of Lafayette. The Protests ask the COGCC to deny the
applications.
If the State approves the drilling and spacing orders, 8
North would still have to apply to the COGCC for an Application for Permit to
Drill that would include specific plans and proposed locations. In addition,
the company will need to go through Boulder County’s local government
regulatory process.
Boulder County continues to be concerned about the
development contemplated in 8 North’s applications and filing these protests
prevents the COGCC from administratively approving the applications without a
full hearing.
The county will post these protest documents and other
information and updates on our oil and gas webpage at: http://bit.ly/BCoilgas,
including information explaining the process for public involvement in the
COGCC‘s consideration of the applications. Members of the public can sign up on
our oil and gas webpage to receive updates from Boulder County via email or
text message.
Statement from the Board of County Commissioners
As we have stated in the past, we continue to be very concerned
by recent drilling and extraction proposals to develop oil and gas within
unincorporated Boulder County.
We filed these protests today as the first step in the
COGCC review process for these applications. While drilling and spacing orders
are routinely submitted to and approved by the COGCC, the operations
contemplated by 8 North in this proposal would have a significant impact on Boulder
County residents in unincorporated eastern Boulder County, as well on the municipalities
of Lafayette, Longmont, and Erie. We will continue to participate in each and
every step of the state review process, and want to make sure that everyone who
may be impacted by this development has the ability to participate in the state
process as well.
We will oppose the drilling and spacing applications when
they come up for a hearing before the COGCC, and urge concerned residents to do
the same.
Cindy Domenico, Deb Gardner, Elise Jones
Boulder County Commissioners
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