Posts tagged activities
Oil and gas exploration (fracking) moratorium till health studies in
Jun 18th
Citing a changing regulatory environment and the need for more public health studies to assess the health impacts of oil and gas development, the County Commissioners voted unanimously to extend the moratorium until the end of 2014
Boulder County, Colo. – By unanimous decision, the Board of County Commissioners today voted to extend the temporary moratorium on oil and gas development in unincorporated Boulder County for 18 months to expire at the end of 2014.
Citing the need for further health and safety studies to test the impacts of oil and gas development on air and water quality, the commissioners stated that the county is not yet prepared – in terms of inspection and monitoring staff, health data, baseline testing and technical expertise – to process new applications for oil and gas development in unincorporated Boulder County.
The commissioners also noted that with a dynamic regulatory environment around the issue, new rulemaking could affect how the county regulates oil and gas under its own authority in the future.
“We are living in a regulatory environment where regulations and rules are changing rapidly,” said County Commissioner Deb Gardner. “A short delay in extraction is legal, necessary and appropriate when balanced against our fundamental duty as elected officials to protect public health, safety, welfare and the environment from potential adverse impacts of oil and gas exploration and development, and to minimize potential land use conflicts between those activities and current or planned land uses.”
Gardner’s sentiments were supported and confirmed by her fellow commissioners, Cindy Domenico and Elise Jones.
Extensive feedback on the moratorium was received from members of the public over a period of 16 months from February 2012 to the present. Over 1,100 comments were submitted this week alone by the time of the June 18 public hearing, all but about a dozen of which stated a preference for extending the moratorium.
In general, public comments have overwhelmingly supported extending the moratorium to assess health and safety impacts of oil and gas drilling to area residents. In addition, on June 5th the Boulder County Planning Commission, by a vote of 7-0, recommended that the Board of County Commissioners extend the current temporary moratorium.
Today’s public hearing also included a decision to table indefinitely Docket DC-12-0003 “Proposed Amendments to Article 12 of the Boulder County Land Use Code (oil and gas regulations), to include a phasing plan.” With the extended temporary moratorium in place, Land Use staff will to continue to work on developing an inspection and implementation plan for permitting oil and gas applications.
A taped archive of the hearing is available at: www.bouldercounty.org/gov/meetings/pages/hearings.aspx.
For more information about the county’s role in oil and gas development, please visit the county’s Oil and Gas Development webpage.
Boulder County Sheriff Orders Fire Ban
Jun 12th
State statutes authorize counties to impose a fire ban “to a degree and in a manner that the Board of County Commissioners deems necessary to reduce the danger of wildfires within those portions of the unincorporated areas of the county where the danger of forest or grass fires is found to be high based on competent evidence.”
This fire ban allows for:
Indoor fires in fireplaces or stoves
Smoking indoors or within an enclosed vehicle
Campfires in improved and maintained public campgrounds that are currently open to the public, as long as the fuel for such fires are smaller than two feet in diameter by three feet in height.
Liquid or gas fuel stove use on private and public lands
Charcoal grill use on private and public land
Smoking outdoors in areas free of flammable material
It bans all other outdoor burning, slash fires, use of any kind of fireworks, model rockets, and all other outdoor spark or flame producing activities.
The fire ban does not affect open fires within incorporated cities and towns; however citizens must comply with applicable ordinances and regulations in their respective cities and towns.
The fire ban will be in effect until the Sheriff finds that the hazardous conditions have subsided.
Anyone found in violation of the fire ban may be convicted of a class 2 petty offense and may be subject to a $500 fine, in addition to any possible civil penalties. Higher fines may be imposed for subsequent offenses.
For current fire and shooting restrictions for United States Forest Service properties go to the following website:
http://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/arp/alerts-notices
For current fire restrictions in Eldorado Canyon State Park go to the following website:
http://www.parks.state.co.us/Parks/eldoradocanyon/Pages/EldoradoCanyonHome.aspx
Sheriff’s Office press release
Missing elderly woman, dog and car found in Wyoming; are safe with state troopers
May 30th
A 74-year-old woman who had been reported missing by her family has been found this afternoon just outside of Laramie, WY. She is safe and is with Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers. Her family is en route to Laramie to pick her up.
Betty Begin didn’t show up for a family dinner on Tuesday, May 28, 2013, and her family became concerned and contacted Boulder police. Earlier today, the Boulder Police Department issued a news release asking the public for help in locating Begin, who was last seen yesterday afternoon. Begin suffers from some memory issues, and family members told police that she sometimes becomes disoriented.
This afternoon, May 29, 2013, Begin apparently ran out of gas on Interstate 80, just outside of Laramie, WY. Begin had been driving in the fast lane, and was reportedly nearly hit by another driver when she ran out of gas. The Wyoming Highway Patrol was notified, and a check of Begin’s record showed that she had been reported missing in Colorado.
Begin was with her dog, Buddy, and both are safe. Family members are on their way to Laramie to pick them up.
At this time, police have no further information about Begin’s activities between the time she was reported missing and the time she was found.
The Boulder Police Department would like to thank the Wyoming Highway Patrol, the public and the media for their help in publicizing this case and ultimately locating Betty Begin.
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