From the Valley Courier (Ruth Heide):
“We are very concerned in the Del Norte area and should be for the whole of the Valley for pollution of our underground water,” Wiescamp said. Wiescamp said a Houston-based firm, Dan A. Hughes, owns mineral rights up San Francisco Creek and may seek permission to drill. Wiescamp said the potential drill site is next to an area drilled in the early 1980’s when an exploratory well was drilled about 4,200 feet. Wiescamp added that Owen Scherzer of Twin Pines Ranch remembered when artesian geothermal water with a temperature of 110 degrees was hit at 4,100-4,200 feet, so it could be possible that exploratory oil and gas drilling could hit underground water sources. “That tells me we are playing with fire,” Wiescamp said. “There’s a lot of our water running underneath … We are very concerned about the punching into our source of water with hydraulic ‘fracking’ chemicals that they use … We just hope they run into a dry hole…
Colorado Division of Water Resources Division 3 Engineer Craig Cotten said he had also been contacted by several people who were concerned about this, and he had been contacted by the drilling company. “The Division of Water Resources doesn’t really have any say in these types of wells unless they produce water,” he said. However, he has contacted the oil and gas commission to recommend precautions be taken during any drilling, should it occur.
Rio Grande Roundtable Board Chairman Mike Gibson said representatives from the oil and gas company came to his office as well. He is district manager for the San Luis Valley Water Conservancy District. Gibson suggested the roundtable board set up a sub-committee, and Wiescamp and others volunteered to sit on it.
More IBCC — basin roundtables coverage here.