Dear Editor:
It was shocking to read in the Tribune of the intent to drill an oil well in the Nature Conservancy that is part of the Cheyenne Bottoms area. Thank you to the Great Bend Tribune for reporting on these plans. Response to this possible pollution threat to the area is very short with a July 4 deadline.
This drilling intent was apparently posted on a website but in an aging community, not everyone has a computer and if one does how often would one go to a website that contains this information? We seem to live in a world of coverups. Something this important should be printed in the Public Notices of the local newspaper.
After attending the commission meeting that had this on the agenda, I must commend Commissioner Jennifer Schartz for presenting a motion to have a public meeting called at a time when most people could attend. However, the motion died for lack of a second. Jennifer’s constituents should be both proud and grateful that she tried her best to give them a voice.
The State of Kansas has invested a lot of money and effort to bring the Cheyenne Bottoms area to where it is today. If there should be any kind of oil spill from the wells in the Nature Conservancy it could pollute the Cheyenne Bottoms and damage the entire area. No doubt BP was well intentioned but their spill will cause problems in the Gulf for years to come. There have been far too many spills and pipeline “accidents” for this to be taken lightly.
It is time that everyone should realize what a jewel we have in the Cheyenne Bottoms and should protect it for generations to come.
Velma Kraft
Great Bend