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Articles by Gwen Lachelt
This November we must protect election officials
HARASSMENT This November we must protect election officials The attorney general of the United States, Merrick Garland, had a reminder for the American people in remarks before a recent meeting of the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force: “The public servants who administer elections must be able to do their jobs without fearing for their safety or that of their family.” The task force is a relatively new effort created to address the hostility that has been a perennial part of...
— Western Leaders Network
January 31, 2022 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency EPA Docket Center Docket ID No. EPAHQ-OAR-2021-0317 Mail Code 28221T 1200 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20460 Dear Administrator Michael Regan, In light of the Environmental Protection Agency’s recently released proposal for federal rules to reduce climate-warming methane emissions from new and existing oil and gas wells, we, 168 tribal, local and state elected officials, representing millions of residents across the Interior West,...
Opinion: The Bureau of Land Management belongs in Washington, D.C.
Since its inception in 1946, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management has been responsible for sustaining the “health, diversity and productivity” of our nation’s public lands, of which there are 245 million acres today. The agency manages these lands for an array of uses including farming and ranching, outdoor recreation, and energy and mineral development, all of which are critical to our local economies and way of life here in the West.
Opinion: Stronger methane rules will benefit the West Slope and Front Range alike
As county commissioners representing both sides of the Continental Divide, we know that by working together we can ensure strong protections for our air and climate to the benefit of all Coloradans. This December, the Colorado’s Air Quality Control Commission (AQCC) will consider strong new rules to cut methane and air pollution from oil and gas operations across the state.
Congress's mining rider would put us in the hole
In 2015, polluted water spilled out of the Gold King mine turning the Animas River — the lifeblood of La Plata County — a toxic orange. The recovery has begun, but it is a slow process; the cost of cleanup is difficult to predict, but will be in the millions. La Plata County is not alone. Too often mines leave behind devastation that taxpayers must pay for and communities must endure.
Pine River Times
The La Plata County Commissioners all recognize the convenience that the location provides residents in the Bayfield and Ignacio communities and regret that the county is in a position to have to make cutbacks to county services. We will make every effort possible to minimize the impact of closing the Bayfield branch. After heartfelt consideration, research and data analysis, we have come to the conclusion that it is necessary to close the Bayfield Motor Vehicle office.
BLM methane rule a welcome tool
As local elected officials representing San Juan Basin communities, we welcome the news that the Department of Interior has finalized new rules to cut natural gas, also called methane, waste. This rule is good for the Four Corners and will protect public health, keep our skies blue, and bolster our local economy. In August 2016, NASA released a study highlighting how and where industrial methane emissions are making their way into the San Juan Basin’s air.
Hold mining companies responsible for cleanups
The American people are about to inherit another costly Superfund site, courtesy of inadequate and outdated federal mining regulations. Earlier this month, the EPA recommended that the Gold King Mine in southwest Colorado, which dumped a torrent of mine waste into the Animas River last year, should be added to the list of the nation's most toxic clean-up sites.
When a River Runs Orange
Durango, Colo. — THE recent mining pollution spill in my corner of Colorado — La Plata County — is making national news for all the wrong reasons. Beyond the spill and its impact on everyone downstream, the underlying causes are far more worrisome and dangerous than just a mistake made by the Environmental Protection Agency. Yes, it is a cruel irony that an E.P.A. contractor, while trying to clean up pollution from old mines, instead made the problem much, much worse.
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