Training & Workshops

Upcoming Workshops & Presentations

No current upcoming workshops or presentations. Please check back for any updates.

Past Workshops

How Close is Too Close? Urban Drilling and Distance Regulations
Thursday, Oct. 1, 2015
3:30-4:00 p.m. Reception with light refreshments
4:00-5:00 p.m. Lecture and Q & A
Room 205, Wolf Law Building, CU Boulder

Abstract: Since the beginning of the shale and unconventional oil and gas boom in the early 2000s, setback distances have emerged as important policy tools for regulating the proximity of drilling and hydraulic fracturing sites to homes, schools, and other public gathering facilities in Texas. Setback distances allow cities to address several issues associated with drilling and fracking (e.g., human health effects, noise) with one technical policy. However, setbacks remain contentious within the oil and gas industry because they reduce well density and limit production in city territories. Currently, municipal setbacks in Texas range from 200 to 1,500 feet. To inform current debates about local control and oil and gas drilling in urban areas, this talk examines how Texas municipalities determine setback distances and why certain setback models have become common. Although Texas city governments strive to balance potential economic benefits, community health and safety, and property rights when they selectively copy and modify policy provisions from other municipalities, hydrocarbon institutions, regulatory experimentation, and contestation also influence urban hydrocarbon governance. Recent state-level preemption legislation, distance variances, subsequent suburban developments, and issues surrounding informed consent contribute to complexities in determining ‘safe’ distances between oil and gas drilling and urban populations.

Soil Water and Air Spring Issues Forum Webinar
May 12, 2015
Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management

Environmentally Friendly Drilling
Site Restoration
Water Treatment and Recycling
Databases for Best Management Practices
Flaring Issues, Solutions and Technologies Land Use Site Selection Information Tool

CH4 Connections
September 23-24, 2014, Houston, TX

See the presentations here
For more information on HARC, go to http://www.harc.edu
For more information on the Environmentally Friendly Drilling Systems program, go to http://efdsystems.org
For the conference agenda, click here.

FrackingSENSE Series - AirWaterGas Research Network

The Air Water and Gas Project has compiled a series of podcasts featuring speakers with substantial expertise on natural gas development to provide a measured, honest exploration of the controversial topic.

2014 Martz Summer Conference
June 5-6, 2014

Technological advances for extracting oil and gas from shale deposits have ushered in a new era of energy development in key resource-rich pockets throughout the US. In this event, we review the ongoing efforts of governments and industry to develop the regulatory and management practices necessary to protect water and air resources, drawing on the latest scientific research to tackle areas of uncertainty and to inform future action.

Intermountain BMP and LawAtlas -- Water Quality Databases Presentation: Managing Oil and Gas Development in Mississippi
March 28, 2014

Development of the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale is in its early stages in southwest Mississippi. The workshop is one of a series that the Mississippi State University Extension Service is hosting to present information to policymakers and community members. CLICK HERE to view the PowerPoint presentation.

LawAtlas -- Water Quality Database Webinar: Fracking, Water Quality and Public Health: Examining Current Laws and Regulations
March 20, 2014

Improved technology developments in directional drilling and hydraulic fracturing have resulted in an oil and gas production boom nationwide. This webinar examines the laws and regulations governing water quality issues related to oil and gas development, recent state court decisions affecting regulations, and implications for public health. CLICK HERE to view the PowerPoint presentation.

Water, Oil, and Gas 101: Nuts and Bolts of Leases, Surface Use Agreements, and Water Rights for Non-Oil and Gas Attorneys
September 26, 2013, Denver, CO

This third program in the Water, Oil, and Gas 101 series was designed to provide those who don’t practice in the area with essential information regarding leases, surface use agreements, siting considerations for oil and gas facilities, the resolution of disputes before the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC), the ins and outs of nontributary and produced nontributary ground water, and water rights as an asset.

Water, Oil, and Gas 101: Recycling and Reuse of Water
June 11, 2013, Denver, CO

This second program in the Water, Oil, and Gas 101 series focusedon the technology behind the recycling of produced water and hydraulic back fracturing flowback fluid and the issue of mandatory recycling. It also addressed the legal implications of water reuse and opportunities in Colorado.

Water, Oil, and Gas 101
April 10, 2013, Denver, CO

This full-day program, cosponsored by the Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute (Sturm College of Law, University of Denver), the Colorado Bar Association CLE, and White & Jankowski, LLP, was the first of a 3-part series focusing on water, oil and gas issues of critical interest in Colorado. The first program provided an overview of the pertinent law and issues generated when the water, oil and gas industries interact; and addressed water quality concerns and the purchasing of water from municipalities for hydraulic fracturing and drilling. Program #2 is scheduled for June 11; Program #3 for August 16. CLE credits available. For more information please contact Leslie Brodhead.

PROGRAM 1: TABLE OF CONTENTS

Section 1: How the Water and Oil and Gas Industries Interact

• Issues in the West When the Water and Oil and Gas Industries Interact, Presented by Gwen Lachelt, County Commissioner
• Oil and Gas Law and Water Law Overview: Coalbed Methane- Produced Water and More, Presented by Sarah Klahn, Esq.

Section 2: Purchasing Water from Municipalities for Hydraulic Fracturing and Drilling
Presented by: Jon Monson, Director, Water and Sewer Department; Walraven Ketellapper, Managing Principal; Cliff Wilson, Managing Principal

Section 3: Treatment, Recycling and Disposal of Water
Presented by Gary Beers, Managing Principal

Section 4: Water Contamination
• Lessons Learned from Pavillion, WY: Sources of Possible Water Contamination Due to Oil and Gas Development
Presented by Bruce Baizel, Esq., Director, Energy Program
• Reinjection of Produced Water and Beyond, Presented by Alan Curtis, Esq.

Section 5: Meaningful Water Quality Sampling vis- a- vis Oil and Gas Drilling
Presented by Christopher Sanchez, P.G. and James Milne, Environmental Manager

What the Frack? How your investments can impact the fracking industry
March 13, 2013 in Boulder, CO

Sustainable Impact Investing Advisors, a professional association of investment advisors whose practices focus on sustainable and socially responsible investing, sponsored a panel conversation on hydraulic fracking. A panel of experts, including industry representatives and grass roots opponents,s discussed the pros and cons of fracking. The panel provided an overview of fracking, and food for thought about whether you choose to include this industry in your investments, or influence companies to use this technology with only the utmost care.

Speakers included Kathryn Mutz, Director of the Intermountain OIl and Gas BMP Project at the CU Law School's Getches-Wilkinson Center, Kathleen Sgamma of Western Energy Alliance, and Sam Schabacker, who led the Longmont initiative to ban fracking. The moderator was Leslie Samuelrich , Executive VP of Green Century Capital Management (a mutual fund company).

Monitoring and Protecting Groundwater During Oil and Gas Development
November 26, 2012
Wolf Law Building - University of Colorado Law School

This workshop discussed oil and gas development procedures that can impact groundwater, the current rules that protect groundwater, those being proposed by COGCC, and other options.

Drawing the Blueprint for a Sustainable Natural Gas Future
January 18, 2012
Museum of Nature and Science -Denver, Colorado

A stakeholder-led forum discussing the key topics affecting natural gas as a safe and sustainable energy resource. Participants learned about the current research and related resources at Colorado’s three research universities and participated in designing future research needs.

Best Management Practices: What? How? and Why?
May 26, 2011
Boulder, Colorado

In conjunction with the Environmentally Friendly Drilling Program's quarterly meeting, this workshop explored the value of different methods for incorporating BMPs into a development as well as the benefits and cost of implementing BMPs. 

Opportunities and Obstacles to Reducing the Environmental Footprint of Natural Gas Development in the Uintah Basin
October 14, 2010
Vernal Utah

Growing interest in the environmental footprint of natural gas exploration and development has generated innovations in management and technical practices. This public workshop reviewed results of a recent study of energy-environment issues in the Uintah Basin of Northeastern Utah, and highlighted examples of environmental innovation taking place in the region. Presenters included industry representatives, state and federal government leaders, and university scientists.

For more information, including powerpoint presentations from the workshop, go to the Vernal Workshop webpage.

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection
October 14, 2009
Rifle, Colorado

The first Intermountain BMP Project workshop, sponsored by the Natural Resources Law Center and the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, was held in Rifle Colorado on October 14, 2009 at the Garfield County Fairground for over 170 participants.

Speakers from Federal, state and local governments, the community, industry and environmental consultants, and conservation groups focused presentations and discussion on a greater understanding of what BMPs are appropriate to the western slope of Colorado and how they are integrated into developments.

Past Presentations