Please join us for this seminar discussing the recent trends and legal updates surrounding hydraulic fracturing. Our guest speaker, Mike Paque, Executive Director of the Ground Water Protection Council, will address the recent report from the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board, FracFocus 2.0 Task Force. Mr. Paque will discuss the evolution of FracFocus and how the site is changing to serve as a database and be more compatible with state rules and data systems. He will also address issues concerning exemptions from disclosure for trade secrets.

Additionally, our Davis Graham speakers will provide several brief regulatory, judicial, and legislative updates, including:

• Recent health studies and different standards applied by media, regulators, and courts
• Local control and ballot initiatives
• COGCC Penalty Bill

Our speakers for this program are:

• Mike Paque, Executive Director, Ground Water Protection Council
• Dave Neslin, Of Counsel, Davis Graham
• Jon Rauchway, Partner, Davis Graham
• Gail Wurtzler, Partner, Davis Graham

Event Information

May 29, 2014

Breakfast | 7:30 AM
Program | 8-9:30 AM

Presentation Materials.

It was another busy and productive state legislative session for the energy industry and business community. Please join us on May 23 for a discussion on how legislation passed during the 2014 session could impact Colorado’s overall energy and cleantech sector, and what opportunities are presented to build on these initiatives in the future.

Event Details

May 23, 2014

Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP

1550 17th St., Suite 500

Presentation Materials

Please join us for the second of our enforcement seminars on current issues affecting air and water resources. In this session, our speakers will cover air enforcement trends and developments in Colorado and EPA Region 8 as well as wetland issues including enforcement under section 404 of the Clean Water Act.

Topics will include:

Air Quality Enforcement

• Successfully navigating the Colorado Air Pollution Control Division’s enforcement process.
• Anticipated enforcement issues under Colorado’s new air quality regulations for the oil and gas industry and potential mitigation strategies.
• The Air Pollution Control Division’s increased (and potentially problematic) use of IR cameras as an enforcement tool.
• Wyoming air enforcement developments affecting specific oil and gas facilities.

Water Quality/Wetlands Enforcement

• 404/Wetlands enforcement in the oil and gas patch
• Uncertain scope of and Proposed Rule for regulated “Jurisdictional Waters”
• Financial assurance violations for UIC injection wells
• Wastewater disposal violations and EPA enforcement initiative for oil and gas operations

Please join us for this seminar introducing the new Petroleum Cleanup and Redevelopment Fund for the investigation and cleanup of petroleum storage tank sites that are not eligible for the existing Petroleum Storage Tank Fund.

Our guest Speaker, Mahesh Albuquerque, Director of the Colorado Division of Oil and Public Safety, and Davis Graham attorney, Nicole Abbott, will discuss the genesis and purpose of the new Fund, eligibility requirements, the award process, and compare funding available under the new Fund with the existing Petroleum Storage Tank Fund.

Event Information

March 27, 2014

Breakfast | 7:30 AM
Program | 8-9:00 AM

Presentation Materials.

Please join us for two seminars on current enforcement issues affecting oil and gas operators in Colorado. Our first panel, on April 17, will begin by discussing recent changes to the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission’s (COGCC) enforcement program including changes to the notice of alleged violation (NOAV) process and certain new templates, tools, and procedures. We will also address the agency’s Draft Enforcement Guidance and Penalty Policy in addition to its recommended amendments to the penalty provisions of the Oil and Gas Conservation Act.

Next, we will cover the COGCC’s new spill reporting rules and forms, as well as concurrent reporting obligations to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and/or EPA in certain circumstances. We will also discuss COGCC’s newly-issued “Lessons Learned” flood evaluation report and future enforcement ramifications. Finally, we will present a case study that highlights the benefits and drawbacks of enforcement action by the COGCC versus the CDPHE and strategies for negotiating settlements and consent orders.

Our speakers for this first enforcement program are:

• Adam Cohen, Partner, Davis Graham
• Roger Freeman, Partner, Davis Graham
• Dave Neslin, Partner, Davis Graham

Part Two of this series, being held on May 8, will focus on (1) air enforcement trends and developments in Colorado and EPA Region 8, and (2) stormwater and wetland issues including enforcement under section 404 of the Clean Water Act. We hope you can join us for one or both of these programs.

Event Information

April 17, 2014

Breakfast | 7:30 AM
Program | 8-9:30 AM

Presentation Materials

In this first session, moderated by Davis Graham & Stubbs’ Zach Miller, we will hear from Advanced Industries grant winners in combination with a study from NREL that challenges traditional thinking around wind power’s variability on the power grid.

Presentation Materials

Please join us for this seminar that will focus on the IADC Daywork Drilling Contract. This seminar is for in-house attorneys, drilling managers, operations engineers, and risk management personnel who participate in the negotiation of drilling contracts and obtaining liability insurance.

The IADC Daywork Drilling Contract is the most commonly used contract in connection with the drilling of wells in the Rockies and all other on-shore regions of the United States. It includes a number of risk allocation or shifting provisions with major economic and insurance ramifications, including becoming responsible for the repair or replacement of the drilling rig and injuries to other contractors caused by actions of the drilling contractor. This seminar will focus on those risk shifting provisions and related insurance coverage issues presented by this contract form. Our speakers have assisted clients in negotiating many drilling contracts and in addressing related insurance issues. The speakers for this program are:

• Gene Lang, Of Counsel, Davis Graham & Stubbs, LLP
• Randy Pharo, Of Counsel, Davis Graham & Stubbs, LLP
• Theresa Fadul, Executive Vice President and Director of Energy Practice, IMA, Inc.

Event Information

March 13, 2014

Breakfast | 7:30 AM
Program | 8:00 – 9:00 AM

Please join us for this seminar that will focus on changes in Colorado and federal employment laws and will provide practical guidance to ensure compliance.

Our guest speaker, Peter Wingate, Deputy Director of the Colorado Division of Labor, will discuss wage and hour issues affecting Colorado employers.

Davis Graham partners Janet Savage and Brett Painter will then share answers to some commonly-asked legal questions. Topics will include:

• Wage and hour developments
• The new credit history law
• The new social media law
• Employment verification

Presentation Materials

Please join us for a well-informed and balanced roundtable discussion of the challenges and opportunities posed by climate change for the Rocky Mountain West from three different perspectives, including:

• Shaun McGrath, Regional Administrator of the EPA, Region 8
• Kathleen Sgamma, Vice President of Government & Public Affairs, Western Energy Alliance
• Amelia Peterson, Senior Research Associate, Governors’ Climate & Forests Task Force, University of Colorado Law School Research Faculty
• Eric Waeckerlin, Attorney, Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP, moderator

Topics will include:

• The Obama Administration’s recent Climate Action Plan and Executive Order
• What to expect from federal agencies implementing the President’s plan
• Opportunities and challenges for the West’s energy sector
• Thoughts on the future of renewable energy projects in the West
• Implications of drought and drought-preparedness
• The role of state, local, and tribal governments in addressing climate change

Climate change continues to present some of the most vexing challenges of our time. Perhaps nowhere are those challenges more difficult than in the arid West – a vast area rich in natural resources, short on water, and growing in population. In the absence of Congressional greenhouse gas legislation or a comprehensive energy policy, climate change has been addressed largely through piecemeal court decisions and various legislative and administrative initiatives. Increasingly, states, local governments, and tribes are taking action. The resulting patchwork regulatory framework has created uncertainty for all stakeholders, including most notably those in the energy sector. How and where the issues of climate change regulation and policy are resolved will largely shape our energy future; and the stakes for the Western economy are significant. Join us as we discuss these developments, challenges, and opportunities.

Event Information

Friday, December 13

Breakfast | 7:30 AM
Program | 8-9:00 AM