(CN) — The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission did not need to explain why it removed protections for public health and the environment from drilling permits, a Denver district judge ruled Monday, finding the permits issued to develop wells in the suburb of Broomfield are still legal.
“While the court agrees it is disconcerting that the commission would reject best management practices that are more protective of public health and the environment than the baseline the act and the commission’s regulations provide, it is not within the province of this court to substitute its judgment for that of the agency,” Second Judicial District Judge Sarah B. Wallace wrote in a 25-page order. “Therefore, it was not arbitrary and capricious for the commission to reject these best management practices."
A group of neighbors banded together in 2017 as the Wildgrass Oil and Gas Committee to oppose development in Broomfield, a city 15 miles north of Denver. Wildgrass first sued the state Oil and Gas Conservation Commission in 2018 asking the state to require Denver-based Extraction Oil and Gas to follow best management practices as a condition of receiving permits to drill in the suburban community.
Under state law, best management practices are "designed to prevent or reduce impacts caused by oil and gas operations to air, water, soil, or biological resources, and to minimize adverse impacts to public health, safety and welfare, including the environment and wildlife resources."
The city and county of Broomfield approved a proposal from Extraction Oil and Gas to drill for oil and gas in 2018, much of which has already occurred.
Although Broomfield required the company to implement best management practices as a condition of receiving permits, the state did not. Wildgrass residents felt they would have a stronger voice if they could report infractions to the state for resolution, rather than requesting city enforcement.
The district court first dismissed the group's complaint in May 2019. The Colorado Court of Appeals reversed and remanded the case to Judge Wallace, who heard oral arguments in March.
While Wildgrass argued the state commission arbitrarily disregarded dozens of best management practices, the court found the permits approved are still legal.
“The agency action subject to judicial review is the commission’s decision to approve the permits at issue in this case; it is not, as petitioners contend, the commission’s decision to reject certain best management practices from inclusion in the final permits,” Judge Wallace wrote. “The court finds sufficient statutory and regulatory standards guided the approval of the permits at issue to not be found arbitrary and capricious.”
Between 2018 and 2021, Wildgrass sued the state Oil and Gas Conservation Commission three times in Denver District Court and once in federal court, which was reviewed by the 10th Circuit. All four cases were decided in favor of the state.
“We're disappointed with the ruling on the merits, but are happy that the judge understood that the injuries posed by this hazardous operation within densely populated suburban neighborhoods,” said attorney Kate Merlin, who represents Wildgrass. “This is a heavy industrial operation, these are multi-acre pads that can have dozens of wells and associated infrastructure and all of this creates enormous physical dangers to nearby residents.”
Over the last five years, the state has received more than 440 complaints against Extraction over operations in Broomfield.
The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission did not immediately respond to request for comment.
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