With more and more fracking sites within the Lowry Ranch CAP reaching public comment and approval phases every week, the time for residents to speak up is RIGHT NOW! Let your public officials know you oppose fracking so close to sensitive areas such as homes, schools, reservoirs, streams/groundwater and the Lowry Superfund site.
The overview map below will help you visualize the proposed pad sites, as well their proximity to southeast Aurora residents and water supplies. Keep in mind that horizontal drilling will happen underneath virtually all homes in the quadrant east of E-470 and south of Quincy Ave, including Aurora Reservoir itself.
The Secret Stash location, which is proposed within the Lowry Ranch CAP boundaries, recently received unanimous approval from the Energy & Carbon Management Commission (ECMC), and is awaiting application completeness review from Arapahoe County, which STAR expects to be imminent.
This site, proposed by operator GMT Exploration, is particularly problematic as it is situated less than 2,000 feet east of the Overland Ranch community in Aurora, which is actively being developed, along with close proximity to streams and rivers. The state made no requirement for immediate pipeline infrastructure nor electrification, despite the well pad’s location within the Lowry Ranch CAP.
Meanwhile, the State-Sunlight Long has reached the point of Arapahoe County public comment and final review. This massive location is both the largest proposed site in the Lowry Ranch CAP and the closest to both homes and the Aurora Reservoir. If approved, its impact and disturbance will be significant and long-lasting.
Key facts about State Sunlight-Long:
- 32 fracking wells on a 35-acre site, making it one of the largest fracking well pads in Colorado.
- 3,000 ft to the nearest homes — a distance that, as new Colorado-based research shows, increases the risk of childhood cancer.
- 3,300 ft from the Aurora Reservoir — less than the 1-mile setback STAR fought to get written into the revised and updated County regulations.
- 17,000 vehicle trips producing high emissions on a service road located 500 ft from the reservoir and less than 2,500 ft from homes before production even begins.
The maps below will help you visualize the size and impact of the Sunlight-Long site:
- Same length as Park Meadows Mall
- 2X the length of Mile High Stadium
- 3X as long as Lowe’s in Southlands
It’s length is also approximately equivalent to these modes of transportation, each lined up end-to-end…
- 14 737-700s
- 22 semi trucks
- 40 school buses
- 100 standard-size cars
STAR is asking all of its supporters to write in your public comment to Arapahoe County by April 4 using this link. Make sure the county knows that this large-scale industrial operation does not belong right next to our community. Short on time? Utilize STAR’s simple “action letter” which takes only 1-2 minutes to complete!
And finally, the State La Plata-South site will receive a final vote for ECMC approval within the coming weeks. It is vital for STAR supporters to engage and speak out about this encroachment on our community before it’s too late.
