My home state, Wyoming, is celebrating 125 years of statehood this week. As we celebrate, I look back and realize that the Cowboy State has historically been on the forefront of change and adapting to the times – and not just as it relates to the energy industry...
Wyoming was the first state to grant women the right to vote in 1869. Wyoming had the first woman governor in 1925, Nellie Tayloe Ross, and she was later the first woman to head the U.S. Mint. The first woman Justice of the Peace, Ester Hobart Morris, was appointed in South Pass City in 1870. The first national park in the world was Yellowstone National Park, designated in 1872, and Shoshone National Forest became the first national forest in 1891.
In addition, it is no secret that the energy and mineral industries have historically fueled the economy in Wyoming. Wyoming has also taken the lead in advancing crucial industry changes.
In 2010, Wyoming was the first state to require disclosure of the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing. The Wyoming Oil and Gas Commission has recently been on the forefront of enacting rules concerning water testing near drilling sites and reducing emissions during drilling operations. Although Wyoming is home to the world's largest and most productive coal mine, Peabody Energy's North Antelope Rochelle Mine in Campbell County, Wyoming's famous wind is emerging as a key energy source; Wyoming ranks first in terms of land-based class 6 and 7 wind sites (considered the highest resource potential sites based on wind speed and power generation.)
The key to Wyoming's continued success will be by continuing to encourage change and balancing development and conservation. Gov. Matt Mead has been quoted in the New York Times as stating:
"I am not going to accept the question of do you want a clean environment or do you want energy. The fact is that in Wyoming, we want and need both." This continues to hold true.
Happy Birthday, Wyoming, I look forward to the further innovations and changes that the Cowboy State will successfully create over the next 125 years.
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