Colorado Clamps Down on Wilderness Drilling

December 23, 2008 By: Marshall Cutchin

In the Wall Street Journal this morning, Stephanie Simon reports that Colorado is putting tough new rules in place to protect watersheds and wild places from indiscriminate drilling. “The rules, which take effect in the spring, aim to strike a balance between two resources critical to Colorado’s future: the bounty of natural gas buried underground and the natural beauty of a state rich in outdoor tourist draws, from sparkling trout streams to rugged big-game habitats. Among other things, drilling will be restricted — and, in some areas, prohibited — around streams that provide drinking water.”