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On Tuesday, November 10, before a room packed with supporters, Stillwater County landowners from the Nye/Fishtail area presented hundreds of signed petitions to the Stillwater County Commissioners. The petitioners want to establish the Stillwater County Beartooth Front Zoning District to locally regulate oil and gas activity within the boundaries of the zone. The area of the proposed zone is large, approximately 80,000 acres, and includes about 600 properties.

The submission is the culmination of over two years of work by local landowners in this rural community, who were jolted into action in October 2013 when John Mork, CEO of Energy Corporation of America, promised to use horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing technologies to “bring a little bit of the Bakken” to the area.

Following Mork’s announcement, neighbors set to work learning about the impacts of oil and gas activity, studying Montana law and regulations, holding meetings to weigh possible alternatives, reaching broad consensus for action among landowners, and gathering signatures.

This is the first formal step in what promises to be a long process in Stillwater County. Click to find out more about what happened, see video of the meeting, and understand what’s next. Continue reading →