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A new analysis by the Center for Western Priorities finds that oil and gas companies reported 2,811 spills in Colorado, Wyoming, and New Mexico in 2019, nearly eight per day. Across the three states, drillers reported spilling 23,600 barrels of oil and 170,223 barrels of produced water—salty wastewater often laced with toxic chemicals.
The number of reported spills has increased steadily in Wyoming and Colorado over the past few years, rising 31 percent in Wyoming since 2015, and 58 percent in Colorado since 2012. Companies in New Mexico reported 1,352 spills, by far the most of the three states. While this represents an 11 percent decrease from the year prior, companies reported releasing 812 million cubic feet of methane—more than three times the amount reported the year before.
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Public lands and their natural resources belong to the American people, and it’s only fair to ask those who profit from them to return a fair share to taxpayers.”
