A temporary moratorium on oil and gas development in Erie may seem like a reasonable action that’s in the best interest of the community. In reality, there is nothing positive about such action, and in Brighton, we witnessed first-hand how it nearly devastated our local economy
In Brighton last year, our City Council, in an effort to ensure that local ordinances with regard to oil and gas development were both legal and within the best interests of the city, imposed what they called a “time out” – effectively a moratorium – on energy development.
However well-intentioned the action of the Brighton City Council was meant to be, the message to energy companies and their employees was loud and clear: their business was not welcome in Brighton, Colorado.
Almost immediately, Brighton’s economy suffered and local businesses across all industries felt the shock as economic support of business in Brighton was withdrawn by one of the area’s largest employers, and one of the biggest contributors to our business community, and to our local economy.
Storefronts, restaurants, hotels, fueling stations, and other local businesses experienced an immediate decrease in transactions, customers and overall business traffic. Small business retailers were faced with not having enough revenue to make their rent and utility payments.
For the past decade, Highway 85 has served as home base for many oil-servicing companies that provide a broad range of support for the industry. A number of shops along this business route bore the consequences of the ban. Restaurants lost their major rush of lunch and dinner crowds, and hotels had more vacancies than desired. The so-called breather caused hundreds of employers to take their business elsewhere and left a community with a major economic dent.
Three weeks of an economic pinch ultimately served as an impetus for citizens of Brighton to come together and let their voices be heard. Responding to the pressure, and taking into account the tremendous impact on the business community, Brighton City Council unanimously voted almost one month later to rescind the ban.
Instead of a moratorium, Brighton took a much more effective and common sense approach that many other communities in Colorado, such as Arapahoe and Broomfield counties, already have taken. That is, they’re working with industry to come up with rules that work for everyone.
Brighton has learned that it is indeed possible to coexist with the oil and gas industry and still have reasonable regulations. Brighton learned that ensuring the safety of its people and maintaining a healthy environment is not only a regulation requirement of every oil and gas company, but a social responsibility and duty that each of them strives for.
We also learned that by cutting off the industry that fuels the city’s job growth and economic development, there were real-life implications.
The repercussions – both tangible and intangible – provided a rude awakening to Brighton residents and foreshadowed what communities across Colorado may face if activists get a statewide fracking ban on the ballot in 2016. I hope towns such as Erie can learn from our mistakes, and from the mistakes of others.
Energy bans – for one month, one year or forever — are bad for communities. They’re illegal. They hurt businesses. They deny citizens their property rights. They cost thousands of taxpayer dollars in legal fees. And they deny the reality that we all need affordable energy produced responsibly and effectively by local workers.
Effectively shutting down hydraulic fracturing and other energy development fractures communities.
There are better, more effective ways to ensure that the voices and concerns of citizens are heard and that communities are protected.
Holly Hansen is president and CEO of the Brighton Chamber of Commerce.
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