Western communities boiling over water quality
Web Producer: Taylor Higgins
DENVER (AP) - Communities across the West are demanding limits on oil shale drilling along the Colorado River over concerns the thirst for oil could lead to polluted water supplies for millions of people.
The worries have prompted proposals to limit acreage available for leasing.
Officials in Nevada and Arizona have been sending letters to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar expressing concerns about the need to protect Colorado River water quality and quantity.
Others back a Bureau of Land Management proposal to sharply reduce acreage available for possible leasing in Colorado, Wyoming and Utah.
Chris Treese, spokesman for the Colorado River Water Conservation District, says the concerns are overblown.
The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel (http://tinyurl.com/9qgmnol ) reported Monday that regulators believe the water supply will be protected and any pollution will be diluted by the time it reaches Las Vegas.
(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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