LANDER - It may be a sit-in, but this isn't the 1960s - and these folks ain't rabble-rousers.

They're retired educators, some of them scientists, some students and others just worried locals, concerned about the air they breathe and the future of the town they live in, a local nurse said.

Retired high school science teacher Elaine Crumpley has helped organized what she's calling a "peaceful protest" to be staged from 1 to 3 p.m. today on the Pinedale Anticline. It's an attempt to call attention to a proposed gas-field development plan some area residents believe would sacrifice public health in the name of big profits for energy companies.

"These are not stupid people," said Leslie Rozier, a Sublette County nurse, describing the people she knows will participate in the sit-in. "They're people who want to protect their homes. They're people who want to protect their yards. They're people who want to look out their windows and be able to see the Wind River Mountains. They're professionals and civic leaders."

Crumpley, who has a degree in environmental studies and another in biology, was hesitant to project how many locals will participate today, she said. But she wouldn't be surprised if about 50 people showed up to join the discussions and listen to the presentations and music scheduled for the afternoon.

Today's scheduled protest will focus on the issue of air pollution, and call upon industry to use the cleanest drill-rig technology available in order to reduce the emissions that cause ozone formation.

The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality has monitored elevated wintertime ozone levels in the Pinedale area since 2005, and this winter the agency issued five ozone warnings to area residents. Ground-level ozone pollution, a chief component of smog, can cause potentially serious respiratory problems in people and animals.

"We'll be there for a couple hours. There will be discussions, talks, music, posters. No blocking of roads, nothing like that," Crumpley said. "Our intent isn't to make things worse; it's to bring focus to what our real concerns are. There's nothing like a group of people with a common voice, and we're just a group of concerned citizens from all walks of life that have had enough."

The Bureau of Land Management and the gas field operators have been notified, she said, and she doesn't expect there will be any problems between participants and local authorities.

Grassroots

The sit-in is the latest manifestation of a growing, grassroots movement in Pinedale, Crumpley said, which is seeking to slow the expansion of gas drilling operations in Sublette County and to get local and state officials to reassess the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of the ongoing gas boom.

Another newly formed organization, called Citizens Learning about Ozone's Unhealthy Destruction, or CLOUD, plans to present a moderated public discussion about ozone pollution and its health effects - featuring a "panel of independent experts" - at 6 p.m. May 13 in the Pinedale Auditorium.

Crumpley is participating in CLOUD, she said, but Sunday's sit-in is not a CLOUD event; it's simply an outlet for concerned locals.

Patty Washburn, 61, a Pinedale resident and retired educator, said she and her husband, Bill, will attend the sit-in because they are both "extremely concerned about the lack of best-management practices" on the Pinedale Anticline.

"(The energy companies) are not using the cleanest technologies, and all for the sake of bigger profits," Washburn said. "I believe they can use best-management practices and still make a profit. I don't believe that our standards are high enough. If we had higher standards, we wouldn't be facing the problems we are. I think anybody who doesn't want to do it right, shouldn't be allowed to do business here."

Washburn said she has never been involved in a sit-in or similar kind of protest before.

"I have never been a radical in my entire life. But I do believe in being honest and being ethical and being moral," she said.

Now or later?

The theme for today's protest is, "Do it right 'Now!,"' and is a response to what some locals see as a strong-arm tactic being employed by industry representatives who are seeking year-round access to the Pinedale Anticline.

Shell Exploration and Production Co., Questar Exploration and Production Co., and Ultra Resources Inc. have promised to implement cleaner technologies and to increase efficiency in drilling operations on the Pinedale Anticline once year-round access is granted.

Today's protest will call on industry to implement cleaner drill-rig engines and to reduce emissions, across the board, before any kind of expansion is permitted.

Deena McMullen, spokeswoman for Shell, said her company was aware of the planned protest. The company's biggest concern is that "folks stay safe when they're out there."

"We have to do a better job of explaining to people that we're doing better out there," McMullen said. "We need to do a better job of explaining our commitment to alleviating air pollution. We just hope that folks stay safe when they're out there, and hopefully we can have a good dialogue about these issues down the road."

Diana Hoff, general manager of the Pinedale division of Questar, had a similar take.

"We certainly support people's right to free speech and to gather on public lands," Hoff said. "Our first concern is for the public's safety when they do this."

Hoff echoed McMullen's assertion that her company needs to do a better job of making people aware of the strides it has already taken on the Anticline.

"Questar seems to be doing the things that they're asking for," Hoff said. "We have the cleanest diesel engines available. We have a liquids gathering system. There are a lot of voluntary things that have been implemented by a number of operators on the Anticline, including low-sulfur engines, which aren't required until 2009."

Officials with the BLM and the DEQ, as well as both Shell and Questar, have asserted that the BLM's updated development plan for the Pinedale Anticline gas field would result in less overall air pollution for the region, even though up to 4,400 new wells would be drilled.

Year-round access, as would be allowed by the plan, would make it feasible for operators to make the costly upgrades required to reduce emissions, officials with both Shell and Questar have told the Star-Tribune in recent weeks.

Environment reporter Chris Merrill can be reached at chris.merrill@trib.com or at (307) 267-6722.

* Last we knew: The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality issued five ozone warnings for the Upper Green River Valley this winter.

* The latest: A group of Pinedale-area residents plans to stage a sit-in today to protest a proposed expansion of drilling on the Pinedale Anticline and what they see as a lack of essential pollution controls.

* What's next: Another local organization, called Citizens Learning about Ozone's Unhealthy Destruction, or CLOUD, will present a moderated discussion about ozone pollution at 6 p.m. May 13 in the Pinedale Auditorium.]]->