Neguse bill would ban drilling under Rocky Flats, other sites

Following the furor late last year over a proposal to drill for oil and gas beneath the former Rocky Flats nuclear weapons plant northwest of Denver, U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse introduced legislation Friday to ban mineral extraction underneath the nation’s Superfund sites.

The bill from the Boulder Democrat, called the On or Under Act, would direct the federal government to acquire any mineral rights under federal Superfund sites and prohibit their extraction or disturbance.

The bill comes eight months after residents in Superior rose up in fierce opposition to a plan by an energy company to horizontally drill up to 31 wells underneath Rocky Flats, which is now a national wildlife refuge. The company, Highlands Natural Resources Corp., backed off its plan following the public outcry.

But the hubbub at the edge of the 6,200-acre refuge last November raised questions about whether current federal regulations actually stop drilling under Superfund sites, which are considered some of the country’s most polluted areas. A news release from Neguse’s office Friday noted that while federal law today bars drilling on the surface of Superfund sites, new technology like directional drilling has “recently provided a pathway for companies to extract oil and gas beneath them.”

Plutonium triggers for the nation’s nuclear arsenal were manufactured at Rocky Flats for decades, ending in the late 1980s. The site has been heavily scrutinized and criticized for the contamination it generated over 40 years of production. A 1,300-acre core area of the refuge remains a Superfund site and off limits to the public.

Superior Mayor Clint Folsom said residents of his Boulder County town were “disappointed to learn that our state and local government was essentially powerless to prevent this activity should it return in the future.”

“Federal legislation to acquire Superfund mineral rights and prevent extraction will protect the rights of mineral owners and preserve the health and safety of residents living in close proximity to these sites,” the mayor said.

Just last month, the Rocky Flats Stewardship Council — represented by leaders from nearly a dozen cities and counties surrounding Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge — passed a resolution opposing any future oil and gas extraction on or under refuge land.

There are 20 Superfund sites across Colorado, including Rocky Flats, the Marshall Landfill in Boulder, Central City in Clear Creek County and Eagle Mine in Minturn.