A member of the Niwot High School Environmental Club in Niwot, Colorado speaks out against a proposed fracking site just three miles from the campus. (Photo: YouTube screen grab).
'Protect Us': Colorado High School Students Post Video Pleading With Local Authorities to Ban Fracking
"We shouldn't be afraid for our health when we step outside our own houses," says one of the students in the video.
Students at a Colorado high school on Monday published a poignant video pleading with local authorities to ban a proposed hydraulic fracturing operation near their campus.
"Especially during a pandemic, if anything were to happen to the outdoors it would be a disaster for my mental health as well as that of my friends."
--Mercer Stauch, Niwot High School
The video, produced by the Niwot High School Environmental Club in Niwot--a small town of 4,100 residents located about 35 miles north of Denver--calls on the Boulder County Commission to ban fracking. The students' school is located just three miles from the proposed Crestone Peak Resources fracking site, which, with 140 wells, would be the largest such facility in Colorado.
"The idea that elected officials would allow for something that is so detrimental to the environment and to our health is mind-blowing," said Niwot High freshman Desta Soma in the video.
The students timed the video's release to coincide with a Tuesday county commission meeting where members will hear public comment on proposed revisions to local regulations governing oil and gas operations.
"We, the youth of Colorado, simply ask our elected officials to do their job, to protect us by using their power and the opportunity presented by S.B. 19-181 to protect Colorado's future," implored Niwot High senior Maya Beauvineau, referring a measure signed into law last year by Gov. Jared Polis that gives local authorities more power to regulate fossil fuel companies' activities.
"Especially during a pandemic, if anything were to happen to the outdoors it would be a disaster for my mental health as well as that of my friends," Mercer Stauch, a junior, said in the video. Another unidentified student added that fracking "affects us mentally, physically, and socially."
Last September, a Boulder County District Court judge dismissed 20 of 34 claims in a lawsuit filed by the commissioners in an effort to halt Crestone--one of the largest oil and natural gas extractors in the Denver-Julesberg Basin--from developing the site.
Residents of Boulder County already suffer from exposure to high levels of carcinogens and toxic ozone caused by the more than 20,000 active oil and gas wells in neighboring Weld County.
One of the Niwot students in the video described having to endure "a brown haze layer that is steadily growing." Another said that "some days we feel burning sensations in our lungs."
"We shouldn't be afraid for our health when we step outside our own houses," asserted yet another.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Students at a Colorado high school on Monday published a poignant video pleading with local authorities to ban a proposed hydraulic fracturing operation near their campus.
"Especially during a pandemic, if anything were to happen to the outdoors it would be a disaster for my mental health as well as that of my friends."
--Mercer Stauch, Niwot High School
The video, produced by the Niwot High School Environmental Club in Niwot--a small town of 4,100 residents located about 35 miles north of Denver--calls on the Boulder County Commission to ban fracking. The students' school is located just three miles from the proposed Crestone Peak Resources fracking site, which, with 140 wells, would be the largest such facility in Colorado.
"The idea that elected officials would allow for something that is so detrimental to the environment and to our health is mind-blowing," said Niwot High freshman Desta Soma in the video.
The students timed the video's release to coincide with a Tuesday county commission meeting where members will hear public comment on proposed revisions to local regulations governing oil and gas operations.
"We, the youth of Colorado, simply ask our elected officials to do their job, to protect us by using their power and the opportunity presented by S.B. 19-181 to protect Colorado's future," implored Niwot High senior Maya Beauvineau, referring a measure signed into law last year by Gov. Jared Polis that gives local authorities more power to regulate fossil fuel companies' activities.
"Especially during a pandemic, if anything were to happen to the outdoors it would be a disaster for my mental health as well as that of my friends," Mercer Stauch, a junior, said in the video. Another unidentified student added that fracking "affects us mentally, physically, and socially."
Last September, a Boulder County District Court judge dismissed 20 of 34 claims in a lawsuit filed by the commissioners in an effort to halt Crestone--one of the largest oil and natural gas extractors in the Denver-Julesberg Basin--from developing the site.
Residents of Boulder County already suffer from exposure to high levels of carcinogens and toxic ozone caused by the more than 20,000 active oil and gas wells in neighboring Weld County.
One of the Niwot students in the video described having to endure "a brown haze layer that is steadily growing." Another said that "some days we feel burning sensations in our lungs."
"We shouldn't be afraid for our health when we step outside our own houses," asserted yet another.
Students at a Colorado high school on Monday published a poignant video pleading with local authorities to ban a proposed hydraulic fracturing operation near their campus.
"Especially during a pandemic, if anything were to happen to the outdoors it would be a disaster for my mental health as well as that of my friends."
--Mercer Stauch, Niwot High School
The video, produced by the Niwot High School Environmental Club in Niwot--a small town of 4,100 residents located about 35 miles north of Denver--calls on the Boulder County Commission to ban fracking. The students' school is located just three miles from the proposed Crestone Peak Resources fracking site, which, with 140 wells, would be the largest such facility in Colorado.
"The idea that elected officials would allow for something that is so detrimental to the environment and to our health is mind-blowing," said Niwot High freshman Desta Soma in the video.
The students timed the video's release to coincide with a Tuesday county commission meeting where members will hear public comment on proposed revisions to local regulations governing oil and gas operations.
"We, the youth of Colorado, simply ask our elected officials to do their job, to protect us by using their power and the opportunity presented by S.B. 19-181 to protect Colorado's future," implored Niwot High senior Maya Beauvineau, referring a measure signed into law last year by Gov. Jared Polis that gives local authorities more power to regulate fossil fuel companies' activities.
"Especially during a pandemic, if anything were to happen to the outdoors it would be a disaster for my mental health as well as that of my friends," Mercer Stauch, a junior, said in the video. Another unidentified student added that fracking "affects us mentally, physically, and socially."
Last September, a Boulder County District Court judge dismissed 20 of 34 claims in a lawsuit filed by the commissioners in an effort to halt Crestone--one of the largest oil and natural gas extractors in the Denver-Julesberg Basin--from developing the site.
Residents of Boulder County already suffer from exposure to high levels of carcinogens and toxic ozone caused by the more than 20,000 active oil and gas wells in neighboring Weld County.
One of the Niwot students in the video described having to endure "a brown haze layer that is steadily growing." Another said that "some days we feel burning sensations in our lungs."
"We shouldn't be afraid for our health when we step outside our own houses," asserted yet another.