Hickenlooper names oil and gas task force

Gov. John Hickenlooper has named 19 members to a task force in charge of defusing land-use clashes between oil and gas drillers and communities.

The Denver Post reports the group is made up of representatives of the oil industry, local government, environmentalists and other economic interests. It also includes distinguished Coloradans who aren’t directly involved in the disputes, including Russ George, former speaker of the House and head of the Department of Natural Resources, and retired state Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Love Kourlis.

Hickenlooper is expected to issue the executive order Tuesday that gives the task force its marching orders.

The group’s general responsibility is to craft recommendations for legislation aimed at minimizing conflicts between oil and gas operators and communities. The conflicts are being driven hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, along the Front Range.