Thursday, May 13, 2010

Hilliard Airfield Gas Well Appeals Board Meeting Packet

Anyone interested in the upcoming O&G Appeals board meeting next week (5/19) can see the packet for the meeting at the link below.

Hilliard Field is Item #2 on the agenda. Beginning on page 175 you can read about variances that are being requested along with maps & schematics. Be sure to brew some coffee -- fun stuff.

From the maps on pages 179 and 180 you can see the proximity to Shadowridge Middle School and Bluebonnet Elementary.

According to the information, traffic would route south on 2499 to 121. Based on the aerial map on page 180 (also above), it appears a new road will be created that will feed into Arberdeen Rd. which is where both the Middle School and Elementary Schools are located. This road will be used for emergency access to the well.

If the variances are approved, expect to see unmarked trucks carrying produced waste water (frack water) down 2499.

One last curious thing I found is that the 1,000 foot setback appears to overlap with LISD land to the south of the well site and right next to the Middle School. Does anyone know if LISD was approached about the proximity of the well to school property?

LINK to O&G Packet:
http://www.flower-mound.com/agenda/oil/oil_05-19-10.pdf

EPA still working on Barnett Shale air pollution problem

DISH -- The Environmental Protection Agency is continuing to devote resources to dealing with concerns over air pollution problems related to natural gas drilling in the Barnett Shale, although progress is slow, the agency's regional chief said Monday night.
More than 15,000 gas wells have been drilled in the last decade in 17 counties. The oil and gas industry says the environmental impact is minimal, but residents have complained about everything from truck traffic to air and water pollution.

"I don't have a way-of-life act I can enforce," EPA Regional Administrator Al Armendariz said. "At the same time, the EPA is not toothless."

Armendariz said he is bringing the head of the EPA's enforcement division to North Texas for a tour.
Meanwhile, the EPA is writing rules on toxic fumes released from oil and gas production in response to an environmental group's lawsuit last year.

One option might be a federal rule requiring setbacks between industrial plants and residential areas. The EPA doesn't have specific authority to enforce such a setback, but it could require one as a way to mitigate the cumulative effect of gas drilling in areas that have other types of pollution, Armendariz said.
He said he is also working with industry groups to get a better inventory of the equipment that might release pollution. Armendariz met with a group of about 100 industry officials recently. "I made it clear to them: We can either do it cooperatively ... or we can do it through legal means," he said.

The EPA's headquarters in Washington is also studying the effects on drinking water of hydraulic fracturing, the technology that made it feasible to extract gas from the Barnett Shale. Armendariz said the study will likely include not just hydraulic fracturing but also the disposal of tainted water from the fracturing process.
"I would be very surprised if Dish and the Barnett Shale in general isn't going to be part of that study," he said.
Dish, a town of a little fewer than 200 people, sits next to a complex of compressor stations and pipelines. The town paid for tests last fall that found high levels of cancer-causing chemicals in the air.

The results were serious enough that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the sta
te agency involved in air pollution, stepped in.

See full story here:
http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/05/10/2178647/epa-still-working-on-barnett-shale.html

Flower Mound sends a message, with a landslide election

By Ladd Biro


It’s morning again in Flower Mound.

Today, the air feels a little crisper. The water tastes a little purer. Our town feels a little safer.

People are smiling more. Blood pressures no longer escalate while driving along FM 2499. Election signs disappeared virtually overnight and, thankfully, they weren’t replaced with “For Sale” signs.

A record turnout for municipal elections produced a landslide of historic proportions. The people have spoken, and this time, they couldn’t be ignored. And just like that, optimism reigns again in Flower Mound.

The gracious, unflappable Mayor-elect, Melissa Northern, accepted a concession call from her predecessor, Jody Smith, without a hint of bitterness in her voice. Her running mates, Al Filidoro and Steve Lyda, praised the tireless efforts of a mobilized citizenry without kicking their opponents.

It’s morning again in Flower Mound, and we are well on our way to healing a divided town.

See full story here:
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-44976-Denton-County-Nonpartisan-Examiner~y2010m5d10-Flower-Mound-sends-a-message-with-a-landslide

Flower Mound halts permits tied to some gas operations

By WENDY HUNDLEY / The Dallas Morning News
whundley@dallasnews.com
 



It didn't take long for the shift in power on the Flower Mound Town Council to be felt.
On Saturday, residents elected a trio of candidates who called for a complete review of the town's natural gas drilling regulations.

At 7:30 a.m. Monday, Town Manager Harlan Jefferson placed an administrative moratorium on permits for centralized wastewater collection, gas lift and compression facilities. The moratorium also includes pipelines related to those gas operations.

An hour later, Williams Production – the largest gas developer in town – inquired about submitting an application for an additional facility. The company was told that no applications would be accepted due to the moratorium.

See full story here:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/city/denton/flowermound/stories/DN-fmfolo_11met.ART.State.Edition1.4c7dcf3.html

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