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Colorado’s Pristine Roan Plateau Threatened by Drilling Surge
Publication Date: December 2007
Publisher(s): Environmental Working Group
Author(s): Dusty Horwitt
Topic: Energy (Petroleum industry)
Environment (Land resources and use)
Keywords: Roan Plateau; mining
Type: Report
Coverage: Colorado
Abstract:
As Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter prepares to take a stand on federal plans to allow thousands of oil and gas wells on Colorado’s Roan Plateau and surrounding land, an investigation by Environmental Working Group has found that drilling permits in the area have already more than doubled since 2004. An analysis of drilling data on federal and private land by EWG found that the number of wells permitted within the Bureau of Land Management’s 127,000-acre Roan Plateau Planning Area increased from 980 as of 2004 to 2,094 in January 2007. The Planning Area includes the Plateau – a spectacular wilderness, sportsman’s paradise and home to many important species.