Prohibiting drilling on the Roan Plateau
Re: “Roan is a valuable resource for West,” Aug. 4 editorial.
Your editorial on the Roan Plateau helped perpetuate misconceptions. The map was quite helpful, and one of the few that show the entire Roan Plateau. However, the former Naval Oil Shale Reserve, the area under question, is only a small portion of the entire plateau. The vast majority of the Roan Plateau is not only open to leasing but is being drilled at a fantastic pace.
Prohibiting drilling on this small area containing the watersheds of East Fork Parachute, Trapper and Northwater Creeks will hardly “lock up” gas reserves or cost Colorado “billions” in revenue. As much as 80 percent of the gas beneath these watersheds can be recovered by directional drilling from currently accessible areas along the base of the plateau. The proposal by Congressmen Salazar and Udall would not prohibit leasing of these reserves, only that they be developed by directional drilling.
The Roan is indeed a valuable resource for the West, but energy and money aren’t the only things of value. Salazar and Udall’s proposal allows us to get most of the gas and revenue while still protecting the unique and irreplaceable resources on the top. This makes far more sense than the BLM’s current plan.
Ken Neubecker, Vice President, Colorado Trout Unlimited, Carbondale
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The Post’s support for drilling on Roan Plateau relies on the Bureau of Land Management’s faulty plan for this regional treasure. A 2004 analysis by The Wilderness Society suggests that the BLM exaggerated the gas potential of the Roan Plateau, while the agency’s current analysis underestimates the damages to wildlife and their habitat from drilling.
The Post mistakenly buys the BLM’s assertion that habitat loss on Roan Plateau will be capped at 1 percent – which equates to about one well every 640 acres. The 1 percent cap does not, however, consider the habitat lost from the 138 miles of roads, nor does it count disturbance from dirt bikes or ORVs. In addition, well pads will not be restored back to a natural state, as one acre per well pad is exempted from the 1 percent cap.
The Roan Plateau is a prized destination for hunting and fishing, yet the BLM failed to use the best available science when estimating how drilling will damage wildlife habitat. The BLM’s faulty assumptions about the pace at which drilling occurs and the frequency with which wildlife protections are waived make it clear that the damage to wildlife habitat will be far greater than assumed by the BLM.
Protecting certain special public land for wildlife, hunting and recreation isn’t going to break the bank – in contrast, drilling is likely to make them unusable for hunting, recreation and tourism, which are arguably more important economic drivers for the state than oil and gas.
Pete Morton, Senior Resource Economist, The Wilderness Society, Denver
Barry Bonds’ home run record
Re: “All-time home run record finally falls at hands of Bonds,” Aug. 8 Sports section.
Barry Bonds blasts home run No. 756 while BALCO (Mr. Bond’s alleged steroid supplier) looks on with admiration. A federal grand jury continues its investigation into whether Mr. Bonds committed perjury when denying his use and abuse of these performance enhancers during sworn testimony.
An asterisk after this accomplishment in the record books is an extremely small understatement for all those who play the game without artificial substitutes supplementing their talent. The upside is the scandal surrounding the 1919 Chicago White Sox cheating has now moved to the No. 2 position in the annals of marks against baseball.
R.C. Lloyd, Longmont
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All I can say is Barry creamed it and it cleared the fence.
Kevin Dawson, Littleton
It’s essential to diversify investments
Re: “Millions lost in collapse of fund,” Aug. 9 Business story.
Recent articles have reported that several local charitable institutions have lost money from investments in Sowood Capital. I would like to put this in perspective.
The Denver Foundation is one of the many local charities mentioned. From Jan. 1 through July 31, the value of our investment with Sowood (only one of our 40 investment managers) declined about $7.5 million. In the same period of time, our other investments gained more than $29 million.
The Denver Foundation’s investments have grown more than 7 percent this year, twice the S&P 500 growth.
Leaders of charitable institutions have a legal and moral responsibility to be wise stewards of their resources. The Denver Foundation has an investment committee of professionals who volunteer to oversee our investments.
The key to our long-term investment success is diversification. When one or two of our managers are struggling, the others are succeeding. In the last seven years, the S&P 500 has grown only 2.16 percent per year. The Denver Foundation’s portfolio has grown 8.18 percent per year.
Diversifying investments has helped The Denver Foundation to grow from $60 million in 1996 to $530 million today, while giving away hundreds of millions of dollars to meet important needs in our community.
David Miller, President, The Denver Foundation
Small city, big egos?
Re: “Applebee’s, Glendale feud sparks lawsuit,” Aug. 5 Business section.
Reading about the latest in Glendale’s continued political and legal dramatic sagas, I could only help but laugh at – and then be mystified by – the city shenanigans. When the former Applebee’s general manager didn’t donate to the chamber of commerce (that company’s prerogative, of course), the retaliation against Applebee’s smacks of inept small-town politics at its worst. Truly, Applebee’s is probably the last thing Glendale and its novice city council needs to worry about. More important are streets in poor condition and the general shabbiness of much in Glendale. Having worked to overcome past problems, Glendale is doing some good things (like the new Infinity Park). But until its residents demand more professional – and mature – behavior from their city leaders, minus the inflated egos, the silliness just might continue.
Scott Cowperthwaite, Centennial
The state of The Post
More and more I seem to hear the bells tolling for the daily newspaper, not only here in Denver, but across the U.S., and it makes me sad. Layoffs and downsizing seem to be occurring at a stepped-up rate now that the Internet is singing its beguiling siren’s song, and the thought of having to read my newspaper off a computer screen practically paralyzes me.
I can’t imagine starting my day without a real newspaper in my hands, while slouched in my favorite living room chair or perched at the kitchen table, where it’s no big deal if I drop a few crumbs or spill something wet or sticky on words printed on paper. But try doing that while reading anything on your PC!
Terri L. Thaler, Denver
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I’ve been a subscriber for years and typically enjoy your publication, but have been growing more disenchanted in what you choose to feature versus bury in the back pages. On Aug. 6, you chose to run on the front page the story about local mariachi bands being in demand. That same day, the Pentagon revealed that, oops, we lost track of 190,000 AK-47 assault rifles in Iraq. This important story was buried on page 15A.
That mariachi band piece would have been a great lead story – in the Entertainment section. If I want fluff, I’ll watch the E! Entertainment Network.
Patrick Dominowski, Englewood
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