Encana’s major fracking plans should be known by Liz Fisher, July 15, 2014, Daily Camera
Last June, Erie’s board of trustees met with Encana to discuss the company’s pilot project. In the initial phase, a network of buried pipelines would be used instead of permanent storage tanks at a new fracking site. The pipelines would bring water in and carry production fluids and waste water to a central gathering facility, outside town limits. Although the exact locations were not disclosed at the meeting, recent news reports revealed that Encana is planning to install 13 new wells in a field behind a neighborhood at Vista Ridge. And town documents show the gathering facility will be located in unincorporated Weld County — beyond Erie’s jurisdiction — at the northwest corner of Roads 6 and 7. It is directly north of the town’s raw water storage tank, from which water will be piped to Encana’s operation.
Out of sight, out of mind? The impacts are not so easily dismissed. Once drilling starts, activity continues 24/7 until all the wells are completed. Try ignoring the high decibel level noise, glaring lights, truck traffic, dust clouds and foul odors. Or the 30 foot tall fabric walls that are used for temporary mitigation. Neither walls or methane capture devices will contain the fugitive emissions that pollute the air we breathe. Fluid hydrocarbons and waste water are toxic and corrosive to both tanks and pipelines, whether they are within Erie’s border or just past the outskirts of town.
Residents are justifiably concerned about the health and safety of their families as well as their property values and quality of life. One can’t help but wonder, what more is in store? [Emphasis added]