The Crestone Eagle, October 2007:

50,000 comments on Lexam drilling proposal sent to US Fish & Wildlife
by Ceal Smith

By the end of the day on Monday, Sept. 17 nearly 50,000 people had submitted comments to the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) expressing their concerns about Lexam Exploration’s Wildcat Proposal to drill for gas and oil in the Baca National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). As a result of the lawsuit filed this spring by the Energy Minerals Law Center on behalf of the San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council, USFWS initiated a 30-day scoping period to gather input from the public. This will help shape the issues to be addressed in an Environmental Assessment (EA) to be drafted over the next 30-60 days. The EA is part of the process required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to determine if a proposed project will have no significant impact (FONSI) or require a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

Many of the comments were the result of a Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) e-alert sent out on Sept. 12 that generated 47,245 responses. NRDC has over 650,000 members nationwide, including more than 14,000 in Colorado. The organization has a special interest in protecting public lands of the Rocky Mountain region from the impacts of oil and gas development. Chris Canaly with the San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council and staff from the Crestone Baca Land Trust collaborated with NRDC for several weeks before to organize this impressive response.

Locally hundreds of people rallied to respond to the EA scoping opportunity with over 1,000 responses from citizens of the San Luis Valley, according to Mike Blenden, USFWS Project Manager.

Many organizations also responded. Among these was the Crestone Spiritual Alliance (CSA) who submitted extensive comments on the behalf of 18 spiritual centers as well as urging their membership to submit comments. Among the concerns of the CSA were the impacts of drilling on the vital “Sense of Place” values that are unique to this community. The members of the Water Watch Alliance were also very active in generating letters and media awareness. Dozens of local businesses and organizations joined in on the San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council/Crestone Baca Land Trust 36-page scoping comments.

Some of the key requests include:
1. Completion of a full Environmental Impact Statement as required under NEPA;
2. A moratorium on drilling until completion of:
(a) A Comprehensive Conservation Plan for the Baca NWR as required under the National Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act;
(b) A full hydrogeologic study of the complex recharge and deep aquifer systems underlying the Baca NWR including potential risks of groundwater contamination;
(c) A full review of Lexam’s drilling permits issued by the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) under the new state gas and oil laws.
3. Inclusion of the following alternatives in an EIS:
(a) Federal purchase of Lexam’s mineral rights;
(b) One test drill instead of two;
(c) Restrict drilling activities to upland areas of the existing Lexam Road (i.e., no drilling in wetland or riparian habitats and no new roads);
(d) Double casing of drill holes to 14,000 feet; and
(e) Authorization and funding for a community monitoring team to oversee all drilling activities.

This is the first stretch of a long journey to protecting the Baca NWR, our communities, the San Luis Valley, and the waters that sustain us all from destructive oil and gas development. Over the next few weeks we will know more about the scope and content of concerns that were submitted and how USFWS is going to respond.

Draft Environmental Assessment
In the next 30-90 days, USFWS will issue a draft Environmental Assessment (EA) that will include an analysis of public comments, identification of issues and the proposed Standards and Measures to mitigate these and other agency issues identified through the scoping process.

The EA should also include a range of alternatives for addressing the concerns about Lexam’s proposed oil and gas development raised during the scoping process. USFWS will ultimately decide to implement one of these alternatives. When the draft is released, the public will have a second opportunity to attend one, or possibly two, public meetings and submit your response to the draft EA.

What to do
If you are concerned about the potential negative impacts of oil and gas development on our community, now is the time to contact your state and federal representatives to request a moratorium on gas and oil development in the Baca NWR until the above conditions have been met. See this page for a list of contacts.

On the State level urge your representatives and Governor Ritter to support a moratorium until a geo-hydrological study of the recharge area and complex aquifers under the Baca NWR can be funded and completed and Lexam’s COGCC permits #5 and #7 can be reviewed under the new oil and gas laws described below. Other important actions to take include writing letters to the editor of your local, regional and state newspapers (see: http://www.usnpl.com/conews.php for a complete listing).

Gas and oil development has affected many communities and lands throughout the West. There is a growing network of people and organizations committed to protecting water, land and communities from the negative impacts. As part of this network, we are in a good position to benefit from their experience and success.

Gwen Lachelt from the Oil and Gas Accountability Project (OGAP) came to Crestone for the community forum in August and presented an overview of some of these efforts. OGAP has been on the front lines of regulatory reform and was an important player in getting the Surface Owner Protection Act (the Nations strongest), Wellhead Protection Act, the Wildlife Protection Act and the Colorado Oil and Gas Commission (COGCC) Reform Act passed in the State this past spring. Gwen provided the Saguache County and Crestone/Baca Subarea Commissioners with OGAP’s Model County Oil and Gas Regulations for Colorado.

Please encourage your Commissioners to enact these important regulations. They are currently involved in educating the public about the new rules being developed by COGCC and how to engage in the process (see: http://www.earthworksaction.org/oil_and_gas.cfm for more information).

Jim O’Donnell recently met with our community to share how the Valle Vidal Coalition successfully protected one of New Mexico’s greatest natural treasures from gas and oil development. Their efforts led to the passage in 2006 of Federal legislation granting permanent protection to the Valle Vidal.

Gwen, Jim, NRDC and others are coming forward to help us build a broad-based coalition to protect the Baca NWR and surrounding communities from gas and oil development.

For more information on upcoming events and how you can get involved call 719-256-5780 or email slvwater@theriver.com.

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