For the first time since Colorado began regulating drilling 75 years ago, state officials said they may order a company to move a well pad farther from the Denver suburbs — a decision that could force the firm to leave oil and gas worth tens of millions of dollars in the ground.
Energy & Carbon Management Commission members made the declaration during a permit hearing for a 32-well pad located about 3,000 feet from Aurora neighborhoods, where residents have fought to keep the industry at bay. Regulators dismissed several alternative locations for the site presented by Civitas Resources Inc. as inferior because they violated Arapahoe County rules that mandate such development be a mile away from the Aurora Reservoir.
