3 Front Range cities ban hydraulic fracturing

Voters in three Front Range cities have voted to ban hydraulic fracturing. A fourth measure on the ballot in Broomfield was failing by just 13 votes at the end of the unofficial count.

Voters in Fort Collins passed a five-year halt to fracking in Tuesday’s election while Lafayette voters banned all new oil and gas drilling in the city. Citizens in those two cities petitioned to get the measures on ballots after city councilors rejected pursuing bans.

Boulder voters also backed banning fracking within city limits.

Fracking boosts production of oil and gas wells by pumping pressurized water, sand and chemicals into the wells to create underground fractures. Environmentalists worry it can pollute groundwater, but industry officials say opponents have vastly overstated the risk.