$6,845,786 a Year

This is the estimated cost of further reducing emissions of smog forming compounds from oil and gas developments north of Denver under the state's proposed rule. Does this seem like a lot? Let's put this into context:

• This is only 1.65% what asthma costs of the state of Colorado annually.
• This is only 1.06% of Noble Energy's Net Income for 2005, which was $645,720,000 according to the company's annual report. Noble Energy is one of the largest oil and gas producers north of Denver.
• This is only 3.93% of Weld County's 2006 budget of $174,164,568.
• This is less than 1% of what it is costing the Valero Refining Company to install pollution controls at its Commerce City oil refinery north of Denver.
• This is 0.83% of the Colorado Department of Transportation's 2006 budget.
  
• This is 1.3% of what the state spends to cover Medicaid costs for over 249,000 low income children in the state of Colorado.
  

And on and on and on. The bottomline is that the cost of reducing air pollution in the Denver area is really insignificant in the grand scheme of things. When the oil and gas industry says they can't afford to do more to reduce smog in the Denver area, it may be helpful for us to remind them just how little they'll be spending.