A bid by the state’s largest oil and gas producer to drill 26 wells within 2,000 feet of 62 homes in Firestone was rejected Thursday by Colorado regulators. It was the first major test of the state’s requirement that oil and gas drilling be set back at least 2,000 feet from homes and schools. Both […]
Firestone
Posted inBusiness, Energy, Environment, Health, News, Politics and Government
Broomfield’s “best practices” for oil and gas are held up as a model. But they don’t curb neighbors’ complaints.
Broomfield has been a leader in local regulation of oil and gas drilling, and its approach is being held up as a formula for allowing more drilling in suburban areas. But residents caution that while things may be better in Broomfield, that doesn’t make them good. Even with 147 required “best management practices” for operators, […]
Posted inGrowth
A once-small Colorado mining town is going through a growth spurt. Can the water supply keep up?
Increased prices and scarcity of supply led Firestone to pursue a cheaper water alternative
Posted inBusiness, Energy, Environment, News, Politics and Government
Colorado’s largest driller still wants to put wells within 2,000 feet of homes, but offers some concessions
Kerr-McGee reversed course Wednesday and agreed to use an electric rig and non-polluting drilling muds and to pipe waste water off site in a bid to drill oil and gas wells within 2,000 feet of homes in a Firestone neighborhood. Kerr-McGee, the state’s biggest oil and gas producer, announced the concessions during a Colorado Oil […]
Posted inBusiness, Energy, Environment, Health, News, Politics and Government
Colorado’s largest oil and gas producer wants permission to drill closer than 2,000 feet from homes
The buffer between homes and oil and gas drilling in Colorado is by rule 2,000 feet, except when it isn’t, and a move to drill in the middle of a residential area in Firestone is raising questions about how secure that buffer will be. The state’s biggest operator, Occidental Petroleum, through its Colorado subsidiary Kerr-McGee, […]
Posted inBusiness, Energy, News, Politics and Government
“This penalty sends a message”: Colorado driller will pay $18.25 million for deadly 2017 Firestone home blast
The Colorado Oil and Gas Commission on Monday unanimously approved an $18.25 million fine against a subsidiary of the Occidental Petroleum Co. blamed for the deadly explosion of a home in Firestone on April 17, 2017. The money will be used to improve oversight and enforcement in the state’s oil fields. The fine – the […]
Posted inEnergy, News, Politics and Government
Colorado announces $18.25 million fine against driller in fatal 2017 Firestone home explosion
Colorado oil and gas regulators on Thursday announced they are seeking an $18.25 million fine against a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum for its role in a 2017 home explosion in Firestone that killed two men. Kerr McGee, the Occidental subsidiary, can appeal the fine in a Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission hearing process. But […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment, News, Politics and Government
Colorado oil and gas regulators are now pursuing penalties in deadly 2017 Firestone home explosion
More than two years after a home explosion in Firestone killed two men, Colorado oil and gas regulators said Wednesday they are finally pursuing penalties — likely financial — against a subsidiary of Anadarko Petroleum for its role in the blast. The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission said it was waiting for the National […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment, News, Politics and Government
Decision to allow homes to be built near oil and gas drilling facilities contributed to fatal Firestone blast, NTSB says
The decision by local officials to allow homes to be built on land near oil and gas drilling facilities without complete knowledge of buried pipelines in the area contributed to the fatal explosion of a house in Firestone in 2017, federal investigators say. “Contributing to the accident was the approval by local authorities to allow […]