Natural Gas and Oil Industry Actively Contributes to Colorado's Quality of Life, Education, Health and Economy

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DENVER – The Colorado Petroleum Council, a division of the American Petroleum Institute, today released a report about the role that the natural gas and oil industry plays in the state. The report reviews the essential role the industry plays in supporting Colorado’s high quality of life, including contributing to educational funds, supporting the expansion of available medical facilities, and lowering emissions.

“Safety, innovations and technological breakthroughs in energy have enabled Colorado to double its output of natural gas since 2001 as the industry increases its commitment to cleaner air and investments in zero and low-carbon technologies,” said Tracee Bentley, executive director of the Colorado Petroleum Council. “This industry takes seriously its environmental responsibility, supporting strong standards and regulations that have helped contribute to our nation’s energy renaissance.”

Colorado’s development of natural gas and oil provides very real economic opportunity, and it is essential to creating jobs and generating much needed revenue for our government. The low energy costs that have resulted from increased development have also lowered energy costs for consumers and businesses.”

The state’s robust regulatory program governs every facet of the industry and the Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment (CDPHE) vigorously monitors community health improvements. Its recent report concluded that the state meets its strict air quality standards.

Competitive forces and industry innovation have led to cleaner, more affordable natural gas production and brought carbon emissions from power generation down to their lowest level in 25 years. Colorado’s natural gas and oil industry has seen both environmental progress and economic opportunity.

Key points from the study:

Supports over 232,900 jobs
Contributed $1.2 billion in public revenue (2014)
Has the most comprehensive natural gas and oil regulations in the country
Quadrupled production of crude oil from 2006 to 2016 due to innovations in directional drilling and hydraulic fracturing
Supports over 60% of energy consumption in the state
Powers Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plants which save up to 60% in energy costs and reduce emissions by up to 50%
Provided $434.7 million in property tax to counties, cities, and school districts, over half of which went directly to schools

The report prepared by API, is a comprehensive collection of information from federal, state and other reports and is available on the API website.

The Colorado Petroleum Council is a division of API, which represents all segments of America’s oil and natural gas industry. Its more than 625 members produce, process, and distribute most of the nation’s energy. The industry supports 10.3 million U.S. jobs and is backed by a growing grassroots movement of more than 45 million Americans.