Erie became ground zero Tuesday night for a discussion of hydraulic fracturing — the controversial natural gas drilling practice that has garnered headlines — as concerned residents and a collection of heavy-hitting industry and environmental experts addressed the town’s elected leaders.
Scientists and regulators from the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, the Colorado Oil and Gas Association, Encana Corp. and the Sierra Club took to the podium in front of a Town Hall board room packed to standing and spilling over into a side room.
Several town trustees mentioned the possibility of imposing a 120-day moratorium on new drilling applications so the town could further study the issue, but no action was taken by the end of the night.
Instead the board said it would direct town staff to deal with future drilling applications on a well by well basis.
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