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July 18, 2013 02:17 PM UTC

COGCC Director’s Insulting Comments Reminiscent of Wyoming Scandal

  • 5 Comments
  • by: ErnieMo

At an oil and gas industry event earlier this week, Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission Director Matt Lepore made what is fast becoming a very controversial claim: only rich people, he said, are concerned about the dangers of fracking.

According to the Coloradoan (http://noconow.co/15De4At), Lepore reportedly said: “If you look at the demographics of anti-fracking activists[…] they are generally affluent enough not to be concerned with the cost of home heating and cooling[.]”

It was quite a statement. Lepore, the head of the state agency that is supposed to oversee oil and gas drilling, has apparently not visited Front Range communities lately. Otherwise he would have known that concerned residents come from all backgrounds, and that their primary concern is not to stop fracking, per se, but rather to restrict its encroachment near their homes, schools and water sources.

Lepore’s comments are reminiscent of former Wyoming Oil and Gas Supervisor Tom Doll. In June 2012 he said that Wyoming residents raising concerns about groundwater contamination in the Pavilion area were motivated by “greed” and the desire for “compensation.” An outcry ensued. Doll resigned.

Residents in Front Range towns near drilling and fracking sites have seen their home values drop and their children impacted by respiratory problems. Can they trust Lepore and his agency to investigate and adjudicate these concerns? And how will the oil industry interpret Lepore’s comments? Do companies have much to fear from state regulators? Wouldn’t we prefer that industry see regulators as tough and impartial?

It remains to be seen if Lepore will suffer the fate of his Wyoming counterpart. He certainly needs to apologize and meet with the Coloradans he insulted. It may take a lot to convince Colorado residents that Lepore can be a fair arbiter of both local concerns and oil industry desires. Remember: Lepore is insulting the very people that he is supposed to protect.

Governor Hickenlooper has been a strong ally of natural gas and other fossil fuel companies in Colorado. The same technologies that are creating a boom in extraction are also taking it to the doorstep of communities and treasured natural areas. To keep the political environment around drilling and fracking from becoming toxic, the Governor needs to show that he cares about striking the right balance. That means he must take a hard look at the latest comments and actions by his COGCC Director, Lepore.

Director Lepore certainly has some explaining to do.

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5 thoughts on “COGCC Director’s Insulting Comments Reminiscent of Wyoming Scandal”

  1. Where do you think your oil and gas comes from ?

    Do you like heat in your house ?  Do you drive a car ?

    I love those arguments.  As if it means we have to destroy our everything in order to have these things.  We don't.

    1. We all heat houses and drive cars but ruining people's back yards, health, and property values is not really how we want to achieve that.  If it were your back yard, your health, you would view it differently.  What kind of message are we sending to people who live in Garfield County, Weld County – that they should sacrifice their way of life just so we can continue to have cheap gas and home heating?  Who thinks it would be okay to have that message directed at THEM?!  No one.

      Once again it's lack of quality political and governmental leadership (local, state and national) that is keeping us from moving forward on renewables and lifestyle changes.

       

  4.  

    Lepore apologizes after getting reamed for his bullshit comments:

     

    “It was, said Matt Lepore, director of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, an overgeneralization and improperly so,”

    Lepore originally made the statement at an energy summit in Loveland this week. 

    Lepore said that residents who “storm city hall and demand you protect their health, safety and welfare” fail to connect how banning fracking would affect natural-gas prices.

    On Friday, Lepore said his comment stemmed from frustration that the economic effects of prohibiting the controversial drilling technique tend to be absent from current debates.

    “I don’t hear them being discussed, and I think that’s a mistake, and maybe the improper leap that I made is that the people engaged in dialogue just aren’t worried about it,” he said. “That’s probably not true either, but I think that is where I was coming from.”

    I don't really believe that is true. He is coming from the same place as another O&G apologist who will say anything to defend his buddies on 17th street.

     

    Last year, Wyoming’s gas and oil supervisor resigned after comments he made about Pavilion, Wyo., residents drew criticism from the governor, citizens and environmental groups

    According to news reports, Tom Doll suggested that the Wyoming residents were driven by greed when they pressed regulators to investigate water quality in the town.

    “I think they’re just looking to be compensated,” Doll was reported as saying during a meeting of state gas and oil regulators in Canada. He stepped down from the job about a week later.

    What neither of these oil and gas toadies get is how clear it is that the ONLY fucking thing they care about (which is generally true of all O&G apologists) is the MONEY. It is always about the money.

    Back pedal all you want Mr. Lepore…but what you should do is follow the example set by Tom Doll…resign…today.

    The governor should have given the job to Thom Kerr in the first place…Matt Lepore is not an objective administrator…no way.

     

     

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