The peace ramifications of our oil independence mean nothing to far-left activists, organized as Colorado Rising, who want six ballot measures in November that would effectively ban fracking in Colorado. The cornerstone measure would establish 2,500-foot production setbacks from water, homes and other designated sites. It would leave almost no square inch of Colorado open for oil and gas extraction.

The same radical element attempted this in 2018, when voters resoundingly rejected the setbacks by trouncing Proposition 112. That was just the latest of multiple failed attempts to counter oil independence by shutting down production in Colorado, a leading energy state. Stopping Colorado’s oil and gas production would kill hundreds of thousands of jobs and throw us into a recession. Our best-among-the-states economy could quickly become the worst.

With or without these measures, Colorado is headed in the wrong direction. The 2019 Legislature passed Senate Bill 181, leaving energy producers vulnerable to the whims of local government officials who can pass byzantine restrictions on drilling. The law leaves the industry endangered by not-in-my-backyard politics, which serve the interests of most local politicians.