ECMC Delays Decision on Draco Pad, Hearing Rescheduled for Friday, November 15 at 9 a.m.

Staff contribution

Today, the Colorado Energy Carbon & Management Commission (ECMC) deliberated on the Draco Oil & Gas Development Project (OGDP) during their regularly scheduled weekly meeting. The Draco OGDP consists of 26 horizontal wellbores, which will run an unprecedented five miles from unincorporated Weld County, under the Town of Erie, and into Boulder County, intersecting more than 22 existing wells along its path.

The meeting began with a public comment period, during which sixteen speakers addressed the Commission. Speakers included Boulder County Commissioner Ashley Stolzmann, Town of Erie Environmental Services Director David Frank, and Sami Carroll, representing the Flatiron Meadows Oil & Gas Monitoring Group.

Flatiron Meadows Oil & Gas Monitoring Group was the petitioner for the public hearing (referred to as a 511 hearing under ECMC Rule 511) held on October 29th at Erie Middle School. During the October public hearing, over 150 people attended, and 41 individuals spoke during the three-hour meeting.

Since July, over 418 people have submitted comments during the 2A location application’s 30-day public comment period, with an additional 271 written comments added to the public record.

During today’s hearing, Weld County Commissioner Jason Maxey, Director/Local Government Designee of the Weld County Oil & Gas Energy Department; Heidi Majerik, Vice President & General Manager of Southern Land Company; as well as Extraction Oil & Gas employees and their attorneys, Jillian Fulcher and Ryan McKee of Beatty & Wozniak, P.C., addressed the Commission.

A recording of today’s hearing will be available on the ECMC YouTube Channel later this week.

Today’s hearing was initially scheduled for August 28, 2024. However, the 511 hearing and the limited availability of ECMC Commissioners due to the mandated cumulative impacts of rulemaking delayed the hearing until today.

The hearing ran from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. At the conclusion of the session, only two of the five Commissioners had provided their deliberations. During deliberations, Commissioner Cross expressed support for approving the proposal but noted his disappointment in Extraction’s lack of proactive community outreach until the hearing. On the other hand, Commissioner Messner stated he was leaning toward denying the proposal, citing concerns that the Draco project did not adhere to ECMC’s Mitigation Hierarchy, particularly the requirement that an OGDP must avoid adverse impacts.

Commissioner Messner specifically highlighted the Southern Land Company’s Westerly development, which has been in planning since 2017, and Extraction’s awareness of the proposed homes that would be within the 2,000-foot setback required by law.

The hearing will continue on Friday, November 15, at 9 a.m.

More information can be found at ecmc.state.co.us.

Read additional YS stories about the Draco Pad.

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