The town of Erie must just hate its taxpayers. That’s how we interpret it’s latest political stunt that happened earlier this week, banning fracking from the town until next year. Erie has been part of the oil and gas development fight since the beginning. Currently, Boulder enacted a two-year ban on oil and gas development in mid-May and Erie appears to be following suit.
Unfortunately for Erie’s residents, this new moratorium just opens the city up to potential lawsuits. Previous bans on energy development in locations like Longmont and other jurisdictions were overturned by litigation. Keep in mind, this litigation cost taxpayers thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars in the meantime.
Of course, that was before the Colorado Supreme Court set a precedent. Now, enacting a ban on energy development is just reckless.
Then, there is the cost to compensate mineral owners for the government preventing them from developing their property. A recent study published by the Colorado Alliance of Mineral and Royalty Owners, or CAMRO, found that banning oil and gas development could cost cities and counties billions. That would bankrupt local governments. That’s not what radical environmentalists are going for…is it?