Colorado Alliance of Mineral and Royalty Owners

Challenge

The City and County of Boulder used moratoria and excessive regulation to prevent natural gas and oil development throughout the Wattenberg Field in Boulder County. Due to Boulder’s lengthy moratorium on fracking, which was a defacto ban, mineral and royalty owners were suffering financial hardship.

About

Colorado Alliance of Mineral and Royalty Owners, CAMRO, represents the interests of mineral owners across Colorado. CAMRO encourages and promote exploration and production of minerals in the United States while preserving, protecting, advancing, and representing the interests and rights of mineral and royalty owners through education, advocacy, and assistance to our members, fellow organizations, government bodies, the media, and the public. CAMRO provides education, political action, and state conventions that bring together community members from across the nation to keep them informed and working together on issues surrounding their property rights. CAMRO is comprised of roughly equal percentages of conservative, liberal, and independent mineral owners. CAMRO holds town hall meetings to educate mineral owners about current events, trains mineral owners how to manage their minerals, and shares the factual benefits of energy development with the general public.

Solution

The organization engaged Netherland, Sewell & Associates to conduct a comprehensive study on the value of undeveloped minerals in the Wattenberg Field of Boulder County, taking into account market values at that time. In addition to the research, the solution encompassed the promotion of the study and the development of strategic messaging to effectively communicate its findings.

The study estimated future cash flows related to horizontal well production in the Boulder County Wattenberg Field could put the county on the hook for as much as $1 billion in regulatory takings claims from mineral owners.

Using these numbers, we juxtaposed the $1 billion potential loss with Boulder County’s projected annual budget, which, at the time, was just $366 million, to show how harmful the moratorium would be to the county as well as to mineral owners.

These numbers were, then, used to educate the public about the financial consequences of enacting hydraulic fracturing regulations, setbacks, and bans. We executed an innovative strategic media campaign using press releases, interviews, and a social media campaign to reach local and national media outlets.

Results

By strategically targeting earned media, the study and the surrounding stories captured the attention of approximately 56 million readers and viewers across the country during the campaign.

The effort achieved its goals of educating and recruiting mineral owners to be proactive in fighting for their property rights; educating state, municipal, and other local officials about the financial consequences of fracking regulations, setbacks, and bans; helping the general public understand the complicated topic of mineral ownership; and discouraging elected officials from preventing mineral owners from developing their real property.