Saltwater Disposal Hell

Oops, Well.  The word is well.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports on the city council meeting about extending the moratorium for Saltwater disposal wells in Fort Worth for gas drilling. 

Since 2002, urban gas drilling has seeped into almost every corner of Fort Worth, Tarrant County and surrounding counties to the north, south and west. But we still don't have a good way to deal with the 3.5 million gallons or so of wastewater from hydraulic fracturing at each of those wells or the "produced water" that comes up out of the hole afterward.

The standard way is to inject it back into another hole dug into a formation even deeper than the mile-deep, gas-rich Barnett Shale. But some people call that pollution -- gas well wastewater has a salt content about three times that of seawater. Some scientists have even blamed deep injection wells for minor earthquakes in North Texas.

Our favorite part of the report?  A comment from a citizen living near a drill site.  

I married a Texan, moved here a few years ago. I have a BS degree in zoology and a certificate in Environmental Engineering Technology. I come from Alberta, known for natural gas drilling as well as oil patch drilling. What I have seen here is a joke, an environmental disaster.

They put a well in right at the edge of our property, 5 1/2 acres south of Fort Worth. I have been watching the construction, drilling and operation. Of course we get money from the company, very little actually. It is not even worth the smell, noise and damage they have done to our land. After everyone from Mansfield ISD to Tarrant County take their cuts, we get pocket change. Now we have bottom feeding lawyers and ambulance chasers sending us collection notices on taxes from every Tom, Dick and Harry out there that wants a cut.

I watched the construction and they took about every big shortcut they could. There is NO Environmental oversight what so ever. During the injection, they built a large Tailing Pond at the edge of our property. They did not use a liner, not bentonite nor plastic, in it's construction. The water was dumped in there to soak into the soil and evaporate. Afterwards it has been filled in, to hide the evidence I would guess. We have lost over 25 old growth oak trees in the space of 1 1/2 years. They have poisoned our ground water.

The fracing does occur too deep to affect the trees, that part is true. But when you do not line a tailing pond you will taint the ground water available to the plant life.

It would cost thousands to prove it, so why worry for the companies.

They are not paying the $$ to the little guys when they disrupt your life, destroy your peace and quiet and kill your trees. Where is the money going? I would look in government. Crooked bunch do nothing reprobates. Oh wait here comes another tax notice.

Josh Fox goes to Washington

Read about it and the request for a national moratorium of fracing on Pressconnects.com

Go, Josh, Go!

Fox spoke at a news conference with actor Mark Ruffalo, another Oscar nominee, and three Democratic House lawmakers who support legislation that would apply the Safe Water Drinking Act to hydraulic fracturing because it injects a mixture of water, sand and chemicals deep into the ground.

"My experience is that anyone who isn't an ideologue and has a family, they don't want to be living next to a poison well," said Ruffalo, who moved to Sullivan County two years ago. "They don't want to have poison water. And that crosses all political spectrums. That's partially why I am here. I feel like we are divided enough. And I don't want to divide people. This is a subject that I think is a uniting subject."


The overwhelming vote by the New York State Senate in December supporting a statewide drilling moratorium shows that the issue can be bipartisan, Ruffalo said.

What the Hell?

Southlake Planning and Zoning Commission is asking just that.  Read about the latest gas drilling bait and switch drama playing out there in the Southlake Journal.  And be there Tuesday for the City Council vote, it could be fun.

The City Council could vote Tuesday on whether to authorize the city's first gas wells, despite objections from some Planning and Zoning Commission members who voted against the application.

But some residents, including planning and zoning commissioners, say the city is ignoring the will of the commission by not requiring a supermajority vote, or six of the seven council members. Typically, when the commission denies a request, a supermajority is required for approval.

A city attorney's ruling later that day said that because the commission didn't follow up that vote with a recommendation to deny the permit, XTO Energy could proceed to the council without a commission recommendation. Attorney Tim Sralla advised City Manager Shana Yelverton that a supermajority would not be needed.

That surprised many commissioners, who said their intent was to deny the application, according to e-mails obtained through the Public Information Act by residents who live near the drilling site in the Chapel Downs subdivision. One of the residents forwarded the e-mails to the Star-Telegram.

Commissioner Jim Hamel, in a Nov. 20 e-mail to city officials, said Sralla's opinion is "incorrect on several fronts." He also wrote that he and other commissioners were never told that a specific motion to deny was needed. "If we needed a separate denial to make a legally operative recommendation, it seems to me that should have been made clear to us long before now," Hamel wrote, calling Sralla's conclusion "simply absurd." Last week, Hamel said he stands by those statements.

However, Ken Baker, the city's planning director, told Yelverton in a text message that he believed that Sralla's opinion was factual. "I cannot read the commissioners' minds and thus do not know of their intentions," he wrote.

Bet he can read their minds now...

WHO's in charge?

The Cities or the Industry?  What is more important, citizens safety or making a buck?

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram has an article about gas drilling in Hurst, Bedford, Southlake.  YOU can't afford to miss it.  Read what the cities have to say about the tactics used.

Grand Prairie and Southlake both took part in moratoriums.  Do YOU think they all should?

So, WHO's the next target?  We hear it's Haltom City.  Be there, tonight.

"I had people come up to me and say, 'Man, what did you all do to tick off Chesapeake?'" said Bedford Mayor Jim Story, who attended the meeting and took issue with some of Wilson's remarks.

Both Queen and Story said they are unclear about what Chesapeake wants from the city.

"To my knowledge, Chesapeake has not come to us for anything. Not to talk about the setback or the ordinance," Story said. "To my knowledge, there has been no communication at all."

"While we have fulfilled all requirements to obtain the necessary permit, delays caused by the City still prevent the permit from being approved," one version of the letter reads. It encourages mineral-rights owners to urge council members to approve the applications.

Assistant City Manager Jeff Jones said Chesapeake's applications were held up because they were incomplete.

The week before last, the Southlake City Council implemented a 180-day drilling moratorium as officials tweak the drilling ordinance, last addressed in 2008. No drilling has been approved in the city, though two requests from XTO are pending, city Planning Director Ken Baker said.

Possible changes advocated by Southlake Mayor John Terrell include requiring companies to disclose all the chemicals used in fracturing.

Southlake 180 day moratorium on gas drilling

Read about it in the Southlake Journal.

If you were moving to Tarrant County, WHERE would you choose to live?  Somewhere that rubber stamps drilling, or somewhere that looks at the consequences?

City administrators had proposed a 90-day moratorium, but Mayor John Terrell and other council members doubled that.

XTO's request to drill up to 18 wells has been tabled three times, once by the zoning commission and twice by the council.

In Keller, XTO has requested that the City Council delay until Feb. 15 a decision on the Sky Creek Ranch drill site, which is within 1,000 feet of 18 Southlake homes. The Keller Planning and Zoning Commission recommended Jan. 10 that the council deny the request to drill up to 12 wells there.

Arlington Planning and Zoning Questions

We received an email with lots of questions.  Anyone know the answer?

Direction Change Regarding Air Quality

On October 6, 2010, City Council provided P&Z clear direction regarding the issue of Air Quality.

As a result, P&Z removed this issue from its list of topics to study and report out on in Phase II. P&Z wishes to note that it fully supports City Council’s proactive actions with respect to additional reporting requirements and testing.

My first question is ...so what was the "old direction"...look the other way?

Since they have been permitting for almost three years now, when was P&Z going to study air quality and advise council?

How can P&Z thank council for taking a proactive stance? We are mostly all drilled out now....damage is done.

Grand Prairie has a moratorium until their gas drilling ordinance is finished.

Our strategy is to get as many approved before the new ordinance is in place, however, the new ordinance isn't direct about steps to prevent poor air quality.

BS Update

We have been so busy with streetcars, tax dollars and ethics we haven't been able to update you on the Barnett Shale Hell in awhile, so in no particular order...

What is Steve on Carter Ave up to?  Well, Channel 11 caught up with him last night.  Don't miss this story.  Good information from Lon Burnam and more BS statements from Mayor Moncrief.  Something about regulators not doing their jobs so Fort Worth will do it.  WHAT?  The profiting Mayor and council are mostly to blame for getting us in to this mess and putting our citizens at risk.

Congratulations to Josh Fox!!  Word on the street is Gasland is shortlisted for Academy Awards!!  Go, Josh, Go!

Grand Prairie has announced a gas drilling moratorium on all new permits.  THE PEOPLE are listening!

Not only are property values plummeting around gas drilling locations (that would be most all of Tarrant County) now some banks won't finance properties in those areas either. Uh oh...better save your huge royalty checks, then you can pay cash.  Read about it here.  You can also read the letter from the Bartonville Mayor to Senator Nelson on their site as well. 

If you missed the 60 Minutes gas drilling story, here is a recap.

What do THE PEOPLE say about the gas drilling meeting in Fort Worth last night?  "It was another waste of time, another industry dog and pony show.  WHO did the majority of the talking?  The industry, of course". 

It's your turn!  Make some noise!

There's a thought...

Let THE PEOPLE vote!

THE PEOPLE of Flower Mound will decide on drilling moratorium in their town.  What a concept, let those involved have a say.  Way to go Flower Mound - be heard!

Read about it on WFAA.com.

Remember VOTE in the Water District race Saturday!   YOUR vote counts!

Saw it coming

The Fort Worth Business Press article on gas drilling moratorium is almost as uninspiring as the Railroad source they quoted.


The city of Fort Worth also has declined to cease issuances of drilling permits, as have other municipalities, making the chance of a moratorium even slimmer.

DISH did it!

Now what, Fort Worth?

DISH has been leading the way...big city should take a hint from small town. Read about DISH, TX 90 day moratorium in the Denton Record-Chronicle.


Or watch on WFAA.com.