Protect Our Wells will hold an oil and gas lease workshop at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 23, at the Meadow Lake Airport Association Hanger, 13550 Piper Lane, in Peyton.The workshop will feature Ed McCord, an attorney, who specializes in oil and gas leases, and former member of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.POW has recommended that before signing a lease, all landowners should have the lease reviewed by an attorney of their choice. The landowners can save money on attorney costs, if they ñ on their own ñ include language in the lease that protects them, said POW president Sandra Martin.The goal of the workshop is to share language that will help local landowners negotiate tough lease agreements, Martin said.ìItís not uncommon for oil and gas leases to omit compensation to the landowner when water becomes contaminated and omit restrictions on what the company can do on the property, such as storing chemicals, building roads or locating the drilling site itself,î she said.Energy companies have hired banks of attorneys to develop canned leases that benefit the company ñ not the landowner ñ and they count on landowners being more eager for the money in a lease’s royalty clause than concerned about groundwater contamination and lost property values, Martin said.The county and state are doing what they can to prepare for oil and gas drilling in Colorado but when something goes wrong, she said landowners canít expect the government to renegotiate a tough lease.Space at the MLAA hanger is limited, so reservations for the meeting are encouraged. Call Martin at 719-351-1640 or e-mail sandra@protectourwells.org to reserve a seat.Protect Our Wells is a nonprofit organization advocating for the interests of private well owners. Membership is tax-deductible. Visit http://protectourwells.org for details.
