Oil and Gas at Your Door? (2005 Edition) - Earthworks

FILE LAWSUITS
amendment also requires the state Department of Mines and Minerals to develop regulations
on gathering lines within six months of when the new law takes effect, and to develop
regulations on other aspects of the industry.
Meanwhile, Letcher County is continuing to move forward with its ordinance to protect public
health, safety and property from damage due to the siting of gathering lines. 481
File Lawsuits
Both citizens and companies have the opportunity to use the legal system if they believe their
rights have been infringed upon. The following are some lessons learned from various legal battles
involving landowners and oil and gas companies.
Landowners and Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP Suits)
In 1998, landowners and others belonging to a group called SoCURE (Southern Colorado
Citizens United for Responsibility to the Environment) became concerned about their water.
These residents of Las Animas County were concerned that the produced water from coalbed
methane operations might contaminate their drinking water. 482
The group commissioned studies of the water; and they complained to county, state and federal officials.
Prompted by the citizens’ concerns, in the spring of 1998 the state conducted its first inspection
of the wells since they were originally permitted in 1995. The state found that several wells did
not have permits, and other wells were discharging water into unlined ponds without permits. Also,
the company’s own data showed that some of the produced water contained concentrations of
chemicals, such as benzene, at levels that exceeded federal standards for drinking water.
In May, SoCURE gave the company, Evergreen, sixty days’ notice that it intended to file suit
under the federal Clean Water Act. In their notification letter, the group’s members enclosed
more than a dozen photographs of Evergreen’s discharge sites and containment ponds. In July,
SoCURE filed the suit. These sorts of citizen lawsuits are allowed under
the enforcement provisions of the Clean Water Act. The Act gives citizens
the right to file a suit demanding that government agencies
enforce the Act’s regulations and take action against polluters.
It is not
uncommon for
companies being
challenged by
citizens to sue
them for slander.
Within days, members of SoCURE were sued by Evergreen for trespass
and slander. The company claimed that SoCURE members trespassed
on company property to take pictures of the gas wells and waste
ponds; and that they slandered the company by saying that Evergreen
was operating without required permits and by questioning whether
health was being threatened by the thousands of gallons of wastewater
being generated on a daily basis.
It is not uncommon for companies being challenged by citizens to sue
them for slander. These sorts of lawsuits are often known as SLAPP
suits, which stands for Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation.
Every year thousands of people are hit with SLAPP suits for such activities
as writing a letter to a newspaper, reporting misconduct by public officials, speaking at
public meetings, and filing complaints with officials over violations of health and safety laws. 483
According to the California Anti-SLAPP Project, while most SLAPPs are legally meritless, they
effectively achieve their principal purpose: to chill public debate on specific issues. Defending a
SLAPP requires substantial money, time, and legal resources and thus diverts the defendant’s
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