Cleaning Up Smoking Drill Rigs

Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action and a coalition of citizens groups today petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to require the state of Colorado to start regulating air pollution from oil and gas drill rigs.

Drill rig engines can spew upwards of 79,000 tons of nitrogen oxides annually. Nitrogen oxides are linked to sudden infant death syndrome and a slew of negative health and environmental impacts. The amount of nitrogen oxides potentially released by drill rigs equals the amount released by over 4,000,000 cars each driven 12,500 miles annually.

Despite the fact that record drilling permits have been issued in Colorado, drill rig engines are totally exempt from air quality regulations. Drill rig engines need no permits and aren't required to report the amount of pollution they spew out to the state.

Today's petition calls upon the EPA to hold Colorado's regulations illegal and require the state to revise them.