Weld County 'disappointed' with lack of answers after environmental oil, gas data manipulation

DENVER (KDVR) — Weld County's commissioners are speaking out after a state report alleged falsified information about oil and gas well remediation was submitted to the state, saying the delay in communication prevents the local government from assessing any potential health risks.

“The state had information about incorrect data in July; information directly related to facilities in Weld County,” said Weld County Commissioner Chair Kevin Ross in a Wednesday release. “And they didn’t say a word until last week — that’s a problem.”

The Energy and Carbon Management Commission announced last week that a preliminary investigation showed data manipulation between 2021 and summer 2024 affected soil, groundwater and inorganic and organic contaminant data for approximately 350 oil and gas locations, solely in Weld County.

That means oil and gas waste could be impacting shallow groundwater and soil around Weld County, according to officials, and perhaps impacting residents' health in the process.

Commissioners sent a letter to ECMC officials on Monday, expressing the county's "severe disappointment in the withholding of information regarding falsified data relating to oil and gas well remediation."

The ECMC said that the manipulated data was submitted by two environmental consultants who were hired by oil and gas operators in Weld County. ECMC said the fake data impacted reports on-site investigations and remediation work plans, which cover the closure of oil and gas facilities and clean-up, or remediation, of oil and gas spills.

"In total, operators are conducting investigation or cleaning up spills at approximately 4,700 sites in Weld County," ECMC said in a Nov. 26 release.

ECMC hints at timeline for when false data came to light

Weld County officials said they were informed of a potential issue on Nov. 25 when Weld County Oil and Gas Energy Department Director Jason Maxey received a request for an emergency ECMC meeting scheduled for Nov. 26 regarding the false data.

“That was the first and only notice the county received regarding this issue,” said Maxey in a Wednesday release from Weld County.

ECMC said it was notified in July of "a few limited potential instances of data falsification," and said a similar notification was received from a second operator in August. The agency said it began taking steps in early September to prevent future falsified data from being submitted.

"In early October, as a result of the investigation, ECMC determined that the scope expanded from a limited data set to potentially hundreds of instances of data falsification," the agency said in its November release.

The agency said its investigation was formalized at that point, and now includes determining which regulatory forms contained laboratory reports that could have been altered, determining risks, and identifying if projects or spills need to be reexamined as a result.

Maxey said he asked for details about the site location and chemical information, but ECMC had not provided that information as of Wednesday. The incoming director of Weld OGED, Bretty Cavanagh, requested several items of information on Monday, according to a Weld County press release.

In the letter, Cavanagh also told ECMC that withholding information from the county “makes a mockery of the dual regulatory authority and protective responsibilities of ECMC and local governments over oil and gas activities.”

Agency says falsified data 'created no new risks'

ECMC said it's working "diligently to mitigate the falsified data's potential impacts to the environment, namely to soil and in limited cases to shallow groundwater." The agency said its investigation is ongoing and is working with law enforcement to determine any criminal and civil penalties.

"Based on its preliminary investigation ECMC is confident that the falsified data created no new risks to public health. ECMC has also put in place additional safeguards to prevent falsified data from being submitted in the future, including requiring additional documentation and examining metadata," the agency said in November.

ECMC said individuals at two environmental consulting firms — Eagle Environmental Consulting, Inc. and Tasman Geosciences — are accused of altering laboratory data that they submitted to ECMC on behalf of their clients to varying degrees: Eagle Environmental Consulting, Inc. on behalf of Chevron U.S.A. Inc., and Civitas Resources Inc. and Tasman Geosciences on behalf of Occidental Petroleum Corp.

Julie Murphy, director of the ECMC, said her team is dedicated to protecting public health, safety and welfare, in addition to the environment and wildlife resources.

“This is an aberrant and disappointing situation," Murphy said in an ECMC release. "Maintaining the integrity of the data upon which ECMC — or any regulatory body — bases decisions is essential. Our permitting, compliance, and enforcement procedures — including the submission of reports, data, and samples by operators — are grounded in an expectation that all parties abide by the law and follow a basic professional, ethical code of conduct."

Maxey told FOX31 on Wednesday that he wanted the ECMC to offer information before the proposed emergency meeting. Now, he's just looking for answers on where the affected oil and gas sites are located so the government can help agricultural producers and residents who have questions.

"There could be questions about people's health," Maxey told FOX31. "As you saw in the ECMC report, there are potential soil and shallow groundwater concerns."

FOX31 reached out to ECMC on Wednesday about the issue and the agency declined to comment.