Characterizing ambient air quality and oil and gas air pollution emissions in Broomfield County, CO

Unconventional oil and natural gas development (UOGD) has expanded rapidly across the United States in recent decades and raised concerns about associated air quality impacts. While significant effort has been made to quantify methane emissions, relatively few observations have been made of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), especially during drilling and completion of new wells. Extensive air monitoring during development of several large, multi-well pads in Broomfield, Colorado, in the Denver-Julesburg Basin, provides a novel opportunity to examine changes in local air toxics and other VOC concentrations during well drilling and completions and production.

Methods
This data set includes VOC measurements collected in weekly-integrated and event-triggered canisters in Broomfield County, Colorado. Field measurements were conducted from October 2018 through December 2022 at as many as 19 sites near well pads, in adjacent neighborhoods, and at a more distant reference location, we identify impacts from each phase of well development and production.