Editorial: Competing oil, gas measures take state down the wrong road

Colorado’s economic future once again sits in the hands of the voters, who will largely determine whether a $31 billion industry continues to add wealth to the state’s economy.

Initiative 97, which likely will appear before voters Nov. 6, would impose 2,500-foot setbacks around wells, halting most energy development in the state by removing 80 percent of non-federal land from drilling.

Supporters of the measure have submitted thousands of petition signatures, and the initiative is awaiting certification by the Colorado Secretary of State.

If certified, Initiative 97 should be defeated, as should Initiative 108, an…