State regulators took the first enforcement actions against some of Colorado’s largest oil and gas operators as part of an ongoing investigation into reports of environmental consultants’ falsification of data on the cleanup of 404 sites in Weld County.

The Colorado Energy and Carbon Management Commission, or ECMC, which regulates the oil and gas industry, said Wednesday that it has issued what’s called notices of alleged violations to seven companies. The companies have 28 days to file a response and hearings will be held.

The ECMC announced in November 2024 that it was looking into reports that two environmental consultants hired by Colorado oil and gas operators had submitted false data on tests of soil, groundwater and contamination at hundreds of locations in Weld County. The data results are intended to show whether work to clean up spills and waste meet state standards.

State oil and gas regulators are investigating reports that two Denver-area environmental consultants falsified results of tests on soil, groundwater and contamination. The information stretched from 2021 to 2024 and was submitted on behalf of oil and gas companies.

The ECMC has said it started investigating when operators notified the state of the potential falsification of information.

ECMC staffers said Wednesday that the manipulated data ranged from wrong signatures to incorrect dates to results falsely showing that chemicals were below levels considered harmful. In a case the staff called an extreme example, levels of benzene, a component of crude oil known to cause cancer, was actually over the threshold considered safe by an order of three times. The benzene was in the ground, not the air.

“This remains a disheartening and heavy subject and as you will hear, our investigation has revealed further issues than were initially reported to us,” ECMC Director Julie Murphy told commission members during a hearing.

The investigation continues and it is taking time to determine what information submitted to the state is accurate or not, Murphy said. All the sites affected by the falsified data must be retested, investigated and brought up to state state standards.

Staffers said the ECMC has established additional safeguards to prevent falsified data from being turned in and is examining records for potential problems. A random sampling of documents should be completed by the end of September.

The agency believes there is no new risk to public health beyond the original conditions that prompted the work. Most of the sites are in unincorporated Weld County. A few locations are in the following communities: Berthoud, Dacono, Erie, Evans, Firestone, Fort Lupton, Frederick, Greeley, Johnstown, Keenesburg, Kersey, Milliken, Northglenn, Platteville, Severance and Windsor.

The ECMC issued notices of alleged violations to Kerr McGee Oil and Gas, a subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum Corp., and Noble Energy, a subsidiary of Chevron USA. The following subsidiaries of Denver-based Civitas Resources also received notices: 8 North, Bonanza Creek Energy Operating Company, Crestone Peak Resources Operating LLC, Extraction Oil & Gas and Highpoint Operating Corporation.

Eagle Environmental Consulting submitted data on behalf of Chevron and Civitas Resources, according to the ECMC. Tasman Geosciences submitted information on behalf of Occidental Petroleum.

A spokesman for Tasman said the company notified Occidental when it first became aware of issues with the data. The oil and gas operator then contacted the state, the ECMC said.

“When Civitas Resources learned of the falsified reports by our third-party contractor, we notified the ECMC and conducted our own internal audit to understand the extent of the wrongdoing by the individual assigned to our compliance,” the company said in an email.

Civitas is quickly seeking to remedy the contractor’s failures and create new requirements to prevent this from happening again, the company added.

Occidental is reviewing the notice from the ECMC, spokeswoman Jennifer Brice said. The company was told by a third-party consultant in late 2024 that one of its employees had altered data related to some of its sites, she said.

“We promptly reported the issue to the ECMC and immediately began working with regulators to remedy the issue,” Brice said. “We are committed to ensuring that everything submitted on behalf of Oxy is accurate.”

The ECMC referred the matter to criminal prosecutors for further review and said it will cooperate with the appropriate law enforcement as requested.

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