Advocating for Safety and Well being

CALC is passionate about ensuring safe neighborhoods and roadways amidst gas and oil related activities. We advocate for maintaining our county roads and quality of life without cost to landowners and nearby residents. We also believe in protecting property values to preserve Laramie County’s natural benefits and overall desirability. 

Traffic & Safety

According to a report produced by Wyoming Department of Transportation on mitigating impacts from oil and gas traffic in Southeastern Wyoming, drilling a single well takes about 60 days and that 1,365 heavy load trucks are needed during preparation and drilling. Following the initial production period, the average well lasts for 3 years and  150 trucks serve the well per month.

County roads that once handled very low traffic volumes will be expected to carry hundreds of vehicles per day with a high proportion of heavy trucks. Roads will need increased maintenance, repairs, and in some cases rehabilitation or reconstruction due to substantial increases in traffic, particularly heavy truck traffic. 

County roads that once handled very low traffic volumes will be expected to carry hundreds of vehicles per day with a high proportion of heavy trucks. Roads will need increased maintenance, repairs, and in some cases rehabilitation or reconstruction due to substantial increases in traffic, particularly heavy truck traffic. 

Heavy truck traffic associated with oil and gas projects is reported to increase air pollution around well sites creating more particulate matter, higher levels of vehicle exhaust, and dust, which  reduces the quality of life for rural residents 

Thirteen states in the United States allow the spreading of oil and gas wastewater on roads for deicing or dust suppression, including Wyoming. A report published in Environmental Science and Technology show that these wastewaters have salt, radioactivity, and organic contaminant concentrations often many times above drinking water standards. Furthermore a recent investigation by the Rolling Stone explores how this practice can contaminate communities. 

CALC has submitted an update to the County’s Road Use Agreement which allows oil and gas operators to use county roads for development activities. The strengthened Road Use Agreement that would also make operators post up front money for roads they use. That way, if roads are damaged the county has funds available for repair and maintenance and won’t need to come from additional taxpayer money. Please write the Laramie County Commission and express your support for CALC’s strengthened Road Use Agreement.

View Laramie County’s current Road Use Agreement here.

Well Being

One of the most common complaints of residents living near oil and gas operations is noise, which can result from a range of activities and equipment, such as truck traffic, well pumps and compressors, drilling and fracturing, and flaring and venting.

In 2016, Physicians, Scientists, and Engineers (PSE) for Healthy Energy conducted a comprehensive review of noise levels at oil and gas operations compared the information to various health-based standards. The researchers concluded that modern oil and gas development can cause noise at levels that increase both short- and long-term health risks, including stress, sleep disturbance and deprivation, elevated blood pressure, and heart disease.

Oil and gas development processes are associated with noise pollution and light pollution, which can contribute to stress among those living in our communities. Fewer studies have evaluated the impact of light pollution (ongoing exposure to light after dark) caused by oil and gas activities that are conducted on a 24-hour basis. However, other studies have found that increased exposure to light at night can disrupt circadian rhythms, interfere with the production of hormones including melatonin, and increase the risk of cancer.

Noise mitigation can include: 

  • Restricting the hours of operation for noise-intensive activities. For example, flaring and blowdowns (pressure releases) shouldn’t be done at night or early morning.
  • Limiting vehicle traffic with restrictions on the hours that industry employees are allowed to use residential roads to access wells and facilities 
  • Minimizing vehicle and engine idling to decrease unnecessary sound pollution. 
  • Installing sound barriers made of steel and sound-absorbing insulation around wells and facilities. Engines, well-site compressors, and compressor stations can be entirely enclosed in sound-insulated buildings.

Light Mitigation can include:

  • Equipment with reduced height profiles and use of natural screening and landscape features when possible.
  • Berms around the perimeter of the facility blocking light pollution during drilling and completion phases. Example: a 32 feet
    height wall around the perimeter of the drilling pad. 
  • Directional and down-ward facing lighting and all lighting higher than perimeter wall to be downward facing. 

Property Values

In a 2019, West Virginia University evaluated the impact of the housing market on Colorado’s Front Range.  The study found in areas of oil and gas production in close proximity to residential neighborhoods, impacts on viewshed, pollution, noise, stress, and public infrastructure has a real financial impact on the prices of homes. Having an oil and gas well within view, deducted nearly $3,000 or 0.8% on average from a home’s value. Each additional well in the line of view reduced a home’s value by another 0.1%.

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