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Greeley City Council Approves Oil & Gas Well Drilling Near Homes

GREELEY, Colo. (CBS4)- The Greeley City Council approved oil and gas well drilling in residential neighborhoods late Tuesday.

The vote happened on Tuesday night after a packed meeting where public comment was spirited on both sides. The city council approved the drilling by a 5-to-2 vote. Construction is scheduled to begin in July.

Twenty-two oil and gas drills are slated for location in a residential neighborhood in Greeley near several schools and homes.

On Tuesday, resident Lowell Lewis showed CBS4's Tom Mustin where the drills would be built behind his house. He says traffic, noise, lowered home values and environmental issues are the big concerns.

"We are not opposed to oil and gas drilling. We know how important it is. We really think it's an important part of our national energy policy. All of those things are not contentious for us," Lewis said.

greeley fracking - Tom Mustin for PROMO
(credit: CBS)

Fracking is an important source of income for many people in Weld County. Earlier this year the planning commission shot down the proposal after public outcry. Tuesday night Denver-based Extraction Oil and Gas tried to push their plan again before a packed house of people on both sides.

greeley fracking - Tom Mustin f5or PROMO
(credit: CBS)

Oil representative Michael McAuley says until a better energy source comes along, oil and gas are still Weld County's life blood.

"Until we're totally non-dependent on foreign oil, we need to continue all those avenues," McAuley said.

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