Getting your player ready...
DENVER—Environmental groups suing over plans to drill on western Colorado’s Roan Plateau have asked that a court hearing be scheduled in case settlement talks fail.
Ten groups are challenging the federal government’s plan for energy development on the plateau’s public land and the leases issued last year. Both sides agreed that no drilling would start until July.
Attorney Jim Angell of Earthjustice said Monday he hopes a settlement can be reached and a trial avoided. But attorneys representing the environmentalists want to make sure there’s time to schedule arguments if negotiations fail.
The Roan Plateau is prized for its oil and gas as well as wildlife and pristine backcountry.
