Cliff Willmeng, Boulder County fractivist, gives Colorado the middle finger
The Colorado Supreme Court has finally put frackivists in their place – by handing down a unanimous verdict that local control of the oil and gas industry is a no-go. This is a huge smackdown of fractivists’ irrational demands on the oil and gas industry, an industry that provides thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in tax revenue to the state. The legal strategy was led by the Colorado Oil and Gas Association which sued which sued the towns of Fort Collins and Longmont after each enacted a moratorium on fracking – also known as a ban.
COGA president Dan Haley praised the decision:
“COGA has always maintained that these bans on responsible oil and gas development are illegal, and we’re pleased that today the Colorado Supreme Court has agreed with us. This is not just a win for the energy industry but for the people of Colorado who rely on affordable and dependable energy and a strong economy. It sends a strong message to anyone trying to drive this vital industry out of the state that those efforts will not be tolerated at any level.
“With this legal battle over, we look forward to working with Longmont, Fort Collins and other communities to find a balance that allows for responsible oil and gas development while respecting the rule of law and meeting the needs of local communities.”
The ruling effectively ends the local proxy war. This effectively ends to local proxy war. After losing in Loveland in 2014, fractivists probably wouldn’t have had much interest (read: resources) in going to more local ballots anyway. But now they don’t have a choice. A Supreme Court that never agrees on anything agrees on this much – the frack banners have lost their mind, don’t know the law, and can’t do what they so badly want to do.
"Among other things, Sanders would ban Arctic oil drilling, ban offshore oil drilling, ban fracking for natural gas, stop exports of liquefied natural gas and crude oil and put a moratorium on nuclear power plant license renewals in the United States." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/h-a-goodman/bernie-sanders-will-ban-fracking-_b_9156182.html
Please sign the petition..and get like minded to sign.
What COGA and all its supporters seem not to see in this faulty judgement by the Colorado Supreme Court is the big picture; namely, global climate change. This global imperative, which is happening whether you choose to acknowledge the scientific evidence or not, should have us all throwing ourselves into the true work to defend the planet, and in the process, creating a permanent, sustainable economy, with permanent jobs that people feel good about because it sustains their communities in the long term.
Continuing to support fracking, from that vantage point, makes about as much sense as putting more rocks in your backpack when you're trying to climb to the top of a mountain: it holds you back and is furthermore unnecessary. What we need is earnest investment in alternative energy — and DISinvestment in fossil fuels. The technology and the resources for an alternative energy infrastructure to support our entire economy exists; what's lacking is political will. And that is exactly what the fossil fuel companies try to exploit — because they don't have a logical leg to stand on…and so they challenge, and seek to confuse, and throw down every legal roadblock they can….because what they cannot offer is a real solution.
And this is what the Colorado Community Rights Act seeks to hasten: forging a blazing legal path forward through all the legal roadblocks that the fossil fuel industry, and other multi-national corporations, have been stealthly been crafting for decades, while the innocent public lay docile. No longer…the Colorado Community Rights campaign should be a clarion call to everyone who is fed up with business as usual, and even if you don't understand all the details of why community rights should be given legal precendent, or that constitutional rights for corporations is wrong, join us and take a stand! To volunteer to help, and learn more about our cause and volunteer, see http://www.coloradansforcommunityrights.org
You will not be disappointed. We stand for a true and lasting sustainable world. COGA stands for profits of a dying industry that is poisoning the planet, and deserves to die, in order to make way for a true and living economy.
Responsible, my ass.
…and everyone else's too, because when the water's not safe to drink anymore it's too late to say "maybe we shouldn't have done that."
Dan Haley can bite me.
The French aristocracy didn't see it coming either
Well said.
Short term profits for a few, long term community environmental and planetary destruction for the many. The choice couldn't be clearer! Short term profits, of course!
Well, this guy must not be from Colorado. If he thinks we are more than ok, with this rouge industry, turning our beautiful state into a toxic waste dump, for mere pennies- he's as delusional as our current governor. Both should seek help. It's far from over. This ruling is just another speed bump, on a busy highway, where it doesn't belong.
I support the Colorado Communities as well, what I see here is ignorance digging it's own grave.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuEcIPvrN00
I support the Colorado Community Rights Amendment!