Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 06/12/2012 - OIL AND GAS EXTRACTION REGULATION AND MITIGATION IDATE: June 12, 2012 STAFF: Dan Weinheimer Pre-taped staff presentation: none WORK SESSION ITEM FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL SUBJECT FOR DISCUSSION Oil and Gas Extraction Regulation and Mitigation within Fort Collins. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The City of Fort Collins seeks to update its land use regulations concerning oil and gas exploration, and develop options for mitigating impacts upon the community. Staff expects this will be a complex and controversial process that requires cooperation and coordination with the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC), oil and gas industry representatives, Fort Collins residents, and other interested stakeholders. In order to ensure the resulting regulations match community expectations, an extensive public engagement process is recommended. Staff has formed a multidisciplinary team to address this project with a project manager assigned from the City Manager’s office. Staff is gathering information about regulation, meeting with other agencies and with stakeholders in the regulatory process, engaging the resources of Colorado State University and others, and will engage residents in public engagement. Staff seeks feedback from the City Council as to both process and areas of desired regulation. GENERAL DIRECTION SOUGHT AND SPECIFIC QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED Staff is seeking feedback to clarify the focus of the project and outreach program for formulating extraction regulations. Topics to be covered include: • Project Goal • Project Process • Public Engagement Plan BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION Fort Collins is reviewing and updating its land use regulations concerning oil and gas exploration and extraction within the City’s Growth Management Area and in City-owned natural areas. The development of regulations is expected to be a challenging endeavor as the state vigorously defends its ability to regulate oil and gas activities, and the oil and gas industry resists local regulations in favor of the state controls. Given the increasing public concern about public health and safety and the possible future proliferation of explorations sites within Fort Collins, City staff formed a multidisciplinary team to identify the issues of greatest concern and explore options to protect the interests of the City of Fort Collins and its citizens. This team will be led from the City Manager’s office and includes representatives from Utilities, Natural Areas, the Office of Sustainability, the City Attorney’s Office, Poudre Fire Authority, and Planning, Development and Transportation. June 12, 2012 Page 2 Actions taken to date include coordination of the staff team, meeting with the City of Longmont staff, initial meetings with Black Diamond Minerals and Colorado Oil and Gas Association (COGA), discussions with Colorado Municipal League officials, meetings with several CSU professors and outreach to several communities in the region. Staff will develop a map of areas of concern – the City Growth Management Area, Soapstone Prairie and Meadowridge Natural Areas. The goal is to develop a resource for decision-making that explicitly lays out where oil and gas exploration and extraction might occur by overlaying COGCC mandated setbacks, known oil formations, pending and existing permits through COGCC, and natural features in one visual source. This is a technique other communities have utilized to frame discussions and address some resident concern. Project Goal The team’s goal is to develop strategy and tools that best reflect Fort Collins’ community values. In order to accomplish the best outcome, staff will engage residents through an extensive public engagement process, as well as work with Black Diamond Minerals (the City’s only existing operator) and with COGA. Staff will also utilize resources available through Colorado State University and seek to creatively address the concerns identified. Staff will also research other Colorado communities and cities’ efforts to understand lessons they have learned. Possible project outcomes include, but are not limited to: • Development of a permitting process and fee schedule for drilling • Development of land use regulations governing conditions for drilling (to legal extent possible) • Development of a collaborative approach to working with local oil and gas operators – an operator’s agreement framework • Enacting a process by which City officials are made aware of exploration and extraction plans as soon as is practicable Possible regulatory options to be examined include, but are not limited to: • Consider adoption of state regulations verbatim • Consider assuming responsibility for inspection through Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) • Consider the establishment of regional effort/model code provisions with Loveland, Longmont, Berthoud, Boulder, and others • Develop a plan for baseline monitoring of ground water, air quality and consider steps to mitigate impacts from industry Project Process As staff is uncertain of City Council and Fort Collins residents’ desired outcomes for this process relative to what is preempted by state law, it is difficult to predict a project timeframe. Staff anticipates that this project could take approximately 6-8 months to complete as recommended. Staff has already initiated internal dialogue and met with some stakeholders. June 12, 2012 Page 3 • Engage N Industry N Residents N Regional partners N Colorado State University experts • Identify areas of concern • Consider strategies to mitigate concerns without regulation • Draft plan – regulations and/or a template for operator agreements • Bring draft plan to City Council work session • Bring plan to City Council for consideration Project Public Engagement Process Staff expects that public engagement will initially consist of information aimed at providing facts to inform the public. Ideally, following the examples of Longmont and Loveland, staff will coordinate panel discussions of subject matter experts that inform and allow comments from the public. It will be important to listen to residents to ensure that areas of concern are addressed. Other communities have formed “super committees” made up of several sitting City commissions to provide advice and address areas of concern germane to their work areas. This may be an attractive option as it allows several boards and commissions that may have knowledge or advisory capacity over an aspect of this process to get the same information simultaneously and to more rapidly move the process forward. Staff envisions developing an advisory group made up of representatives of several boards or commissions who might assist in the project. Should this be pursued, staff recommends that the boards choose a single representative to participate in the project. Boards whose participation could be beneficial include members of the Planning and Zoning Board, Water Board, Natural Resources Advisory Board, Air Quality Advisory Board, and Energy Board. Project staff will develop a comprehensive public engagement plan utilizing strategies such as: • Develop communication platform – website, voice mail, email – to share facts and hear community concerns • Offer subject matter expert panels • Address community concerns • Consider creation of an advisory group of various board members • Consider community forum to allow residents to participate in prioritization of regulatory areas Next Steps Staff will review and incorporate feedback from this work session into the work plan, using the meeting to refine the project process and deliverables. Since the Work Session discussion and project outline are less defined than many Work Session items and the project work is controversial here are a few options for next steps of the project. Staff would like to ensure direction is appropriate to ensure expeditious development of a final work product. June 12, 2012 Page 4 • Staff may submit a project outline memo to City Council for comments • Staff could present very brief project updates similar to the Mason Minute to City Council • Staff could bring a more complete work plan back to City Council at a subsequent Work Session