Voters in three Colorado cities passed initiatives against fracking this week, paving the way for a statewide referendum on the drilling technique, which uses water and chemicals to break open dense rocks and extract oil and natural gas. Residents of Boulder and Fort Collins voted to place a five-year moratorium on in-town fracking, and Lafayette voters banned the practice outright; a ban barely failed in Broomfield. Energy trade groups vastly outspent anti-fracking activists in a vain bid to quell fears of contaminated water and earthquakes. “The good people of Fort Collins feel like we need to make a strong statement about our health and the health of our children,” said anti-fracking organizer John Gascoyne.
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