San Luis Valley Oil and Gas Leases Yanked

144,000 acres of the northern San Luis Valley of Colorado have been withdrawn from an upcoming oil and gas lease auction, a big win for wildlife, for the climate, and for the folks living the San Luis Valley.

The Bureau of Land Management had originally proposed to lease an unprecedented amount of lands in the Rio Grande National Forest and near Crestone, Colorado, at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo range.  Once the leases were sold, oil and gas drillers would have the right to drill these sensitive lands. 

In April, Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action, the Western Environmental Law Center, the San Luis Valley Ecosystems Council, and many other groups officially protested the lease auction.  Local governments, including Rio Grande County, Saguache County, the town of Del Norte, joined in protesting.

At the heels of the protests, both Senator Ken Salazar and Representative John Salazar jointly called on the Bureau of Land Management calling on them to withdraw the San Luis Valley oil and gas leases.

It's a big win to be sure, and hopefully the San Luis Valley will stay safe from oil and gas drilling.

Cleaner Air along the Front Range

Earlier this week, a coalition of public health and environmental groups called on the Regional Air Quality Council to set their sights on meeting the newer, stronger limit on smog along the Front Range, instead of an older, weaker standard.

Yesterday, the Council heeded the call and unanimously voted to set as their goal meeting the new smog standard.  The move promises cleaner air for the Front Range and healthier communities.

To recap, last March the Environmental Protection Agency revised the standard limiting ground-level ozone nationwide.  Ground-level ozone is the key ingredient of smog.  The new standard limits ozone to no more than 75 parts per billion over eight hours.  The old standard limited ozone to no more than 84 parts per billion, and the Front Range violated that standard last year.  Unfortunately, while we have a new ozone standard, current efforts to reduce ozone have been focused on meeting the older limits.

The Regional Air Quality Council's vote yesterday means that our smog reduction efforts along the Front Range now need to focus on meeting the newer smog limits.  It's a smart move, and public health stands to benefit tremendously.

With our goal set, the next step is deciding what smog reduction strategies we need to adopt.  We're one big step closer to cleaner, healthier air here along the Front Range, and we hope to help make the next big steps toward our ultimate goal.

On a related note, yesterday the American Lung Association also released their annual State of the Air report.  The Denver metro area has some pretty bad grades because of its air pollution.  You can check the state of your air on the American Lung Association's website--be sure to send a letter for clean, healthy air!

Clean Air, Clean Air, Clean Air

Here's a recap of where Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action has left its mark for clean air in the region:

In response to a petition filed by Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action, the CEMEX cement plant in Lyons is facing scrutiny by the Environmental Protection Agency. The petition calls on the Environmental Protection Agency to require CEMEX to install the best pollution controls on its smokestack. CEMEX claims its spent "millions" to clean up the Lyons cement plant, yet the company hasn't spent a penny on upgrading controls on its smokestack.

Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action has taken aim at climate change. Together with a number of local, regional, and national health and environmental groups, we've challenged the Bureau of Land Management's decision to auction hundreds of thousands of acres of Colorado, Montana, and New Mexico for more oil and gas drilling, drilling that will fuel global warming pollution.

And earlier this week, Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action challenged a decision by the Forest Service to allow a western Colorado coal mine to vent billions of cubic feet of methane--again  Methane is not only a valuable gas, it's 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. We successfully overturned the same decision last February.

And you heard it from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment first: people are the best air quality monitors.

Oil and Gas in the Hot Seat

The oil and gas industry is going to have to do more to cut its ozone forming pollution in the Denver metro area.  That's good news considering the industry releases more ozone forming compounds than cars and trucks in the Denver metro area.

According to a presentation by the Air Pollution Control Division, just one source related to oil and gas--large condensate tanks--releases 111 tons of ozone forming compounds daily.  Cars and trucks release 108 tons daily.  Below is a picture of a condensate tank north of Denver.  Check out this video (~ 6 MB) to see what ozone forming pollution from these tanks really looks like.

Mower Rebates in Fort Collins and Greeley

It's a small step for clean air in the Denver metro area, but it's the little things that matter.

In an effort to phase out dirty, gas-fired lawnmowers, the City of Fort Collins just announced plans to offer a $25 rebate to residents who purchase an electric or reel mower. What's more, you scrap your old lawnmower and get another $25 rebate. That's $50 toward a new lawnmower, and a small, yet significant, step forward for clean air.

What's more, this April 25th in Greeley, you can exchange your old lawnmower for a new electric mower. This "Mow Down Pollution" event is being sponsored by the Regional Air Quality Council.

Kudos to the City of Fort Collins and the Regional Air Quality Council for their efforts to reduce ozone pollution by getting clean mowers in gear.

New Oil and Gas Rules Promise Cleaner Air

While the oil and gas industry is critical of a package of new proposed rules that will help balance the needs of drilling with the health of local communities in Colorado, we're pretty excited that the proposed rules will lead to cleaner, safer air throughout the state.

Among other things, the rules would reduce foul odor emissions in western Colorado, would limit air pollution when oil and gas wells are being drilled and completed, and would require companies to use low to zero emitting controllers (called pneumatic devices).

We have to say though, the word "rule" is not quite right. Really, these new "rules" set standards of doing it right. Already, a number of companies in Colorado are meeting these standards. BP, for example, is already using green completions to reduce harmful air pollution in southwestern Colorado. EnCana oil and gas is also on a clean air rampage in the Denver metro area, replacing and retrofitting a number of its polluting equipment with low to zero emission devices to help reduce harmful ozone pollution.

Doing it right means reducing air pollution, and that's exactly what these new rules do. Not only that, but these new rules promise to help industry make more money. Williams Production, for example, makes around $9.00 for every $1.00 it spends on green completions in western Colorado.

Really, this isn't about "rules," its about doing business responsibly in Colorado. And from the standpoint of clean air, these rules are a big step forward toward responsible oil and gas drilling.

For more information on these proposed rules, visit the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission's website.

New Air Commissioners Appointed

Governor Ritter just announced four appointments to the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission.

Not only is Governor Ritter reappointing Commission Chair Cynthia Peterson, a steadfast leader for clean air in Colorado, but three new people will join the Commission if they're confirmed by the Colorado Senate.

The three new people include Robert Arnott of Greenwood Village, Dr. Radford Byerly of Boulder, and Ashley Campsie of Littleton. Here's some of what we know about these three:

Robert Arnott used to be with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, but now is tied to the oil and gas industry. He serves on the Advisory Board of the West Virginia-based company, Reserve Oil and Gas, and also owns an environmental consulting firm.

Dr. Radford Byerly is a research scientist at the Center for Science and Technology Policy Research, University of Colorado, used to work with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and also served as chief of staff of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Science and Technology.

Ashley Campsie used to work with the Colorado Air Pollution Control Division and most recently worked for Duke Energy (see page 3 of the linked permit), now DCP Midstream, a natural gas processing company.

But the real question is, how will these three do on the Air Quality Control Commission? It's hard to tell at this point. We're sure to learn more on April 10 when these three appointees are scheduled to be confirmed by the Senate.