Employees at consulting firms working for the largest oil and gas producers in Colorado submitted falsified data on toxic substances to the state for 350 wells in Weld County, according to the Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission.
Julie Murphy, the ECMC director, told the commission Nov. 26 that the oil and gas operators had discovered the fabricated data and reported it to the agency.
The agency’s initial evaluation indicated that the bogus material “does not present a new or increased risk,” Murphy said, though in some cases the “duration a spill may impact the environment may be extended.”
The ECMC has an ongoing investigation and is evaluating and prioritizing the well sites. It is considering agency enforcement actions, Murphy said, adding “we believe the degree of fraud merits criminal investigation.”
The two firms, Wheat Ridge-based Eagle Environmental Consulting and Tasman Geoscience in Broomfield, allegedly altered laboratory data submitted to ECMC on behalf of their clients between 2021 and the summer of 2024.
Eagle Environmental Consulting, Inc. worked for Houston-based Chevron U.S.A. Inc., the largest oil and gas operator in the state, and Denver-based Civitas Resources Inc. Tasman Geosciences did work for Houston-based Occidental Petroleum Corp.
“Chevron is shocked and appalled that any third-party contractor would intentionally falsify data and file it with state officials to assess environmental corrective actions taken by Chevron,” the company said in a statement.
In July, Eagle Environmental notified Chevron that one of its employees had manipulated data and the oil company then notified the ECMC.
Civitas was similarly notified by Eagle Environmental, retested laboratory samples and contacted the ECMC.
“The alleged manipulation of these needed soil testing results by this individual threatens not just our state regulatory compliance but the high bar we aim to achieve in our operations,” Civitas said in a statement.
Occidental in a statement said that Tasman Geoscience had contacted it about the fabricated lab reports and that company notified the ECMC and is reassessing the identified sites to confirm they meet state environmental and health standards.
Murphy said the altered reports included doctored readings for soil, groundwater and organic contaminant sampling, including readings on benzene, total petroleum hydrocarbons and elements such as arsenic and barium.
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While the commission staff is assessing and prioritizing the sites, the ECMC said the falsified data created no risks to public health.
“We determined urgent notifications were not warranted,” Murphy said.
Weld County officials, however, faulted the commission for not making the information public earlier.
“The state had information about incorrect data in July; information directly related to facilities in Weld County,” Weld County Commissioner chair Kevin Ross said in a statement. “And they didn’t say a word until last week — that’s a problem.”
Weld County was notified of the false reports Nov. 25, a day before the problem was made public. The county has formally requested all data, spreadsheets and analysis done on the sites.
Putting the failure in perspective, Murphy said that the fabricated data impacted 350 of 6,700 well sites in Weld County.
Nevertheless, the failure spoke to a bigger question, Murphy said, since the ECMC operates on “the assumption that people abide by the law.”
“If we determine we can no longer make that assumption we need other action and increased resources,” she said.