The Mayor of tiny Dish, Texas, north of Fort Worth, continues to stir up controversy with his claims of air pollution from oil and gas activities causing health concerns in his community. The mayor appeared at the RRC’s January 12 open hearing. You can watch his testimony here (go to item 17…
Dish is a town of about 200 residents north of Fort Worth, Texas. The mayor and town council have recently become concerned about emissions from gas compressors in and around the town, from the Barnett Shale gas development. Large compressor stations are located near Dish; these stations have big internal…
President Obama has appointed Dr. Alfredo Amandariz as new Administrator of Regions 6 of the Environmental Protection Agency, encompassing Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma. (See Dallas Morning News article) Dr. Amendariz, a professor of engineering at Southern Methodist University, raised controversy among natural gas producers in the Barnett…
Three law firms in Dallas have joined to sue oil companies who backed out of leases covering lands in Arlington, Texas last fall. The three firms — Petroff & Associates, Riddle & Williams, P.C., and Mathis & Donheiser, P.C. — have so far filed two suits on behalf of two lot…
A study ( Armendariz Study.pdf) published last February by Al Armendariz, an engineering professor at Southern Methodist University, concluded that gas drilling in the Barnett Shale contributes about as much air pollution to the D-FW area as emissions from cars and trucks. Dr. Armendariz’s study was financed by the Environmental Defense Fund. Dr. Armendariz…
Royalty owners should be aware that they are entitled to severance tax refunds on gas wells drilled in certain “tight sand” formations, including the Barnett Shale. If a field is designated as a “tight sand,” Texas law provides for a reduction in severance tax from 7.5% to 2% for a period…
The Texas Railroad Commission has denied Chesapeake Energy’s request for permission to produce its Ramey 1H well in Tarrant County, because the well was drilled in violation of RRC spacing rules. Chesapeake drilled the horizontal well with a 3,553-foot lateral, even though its permit was for a lateral of only 1,839 feet. The…
Range Resources announced on April 16 that it had completed a horizontal well in the Barnett Shale in southern Tarrant County that produced an average of 9.6 mmcf per day for the first 30 days of its production. This would be the largest Barnett Shale well completed to date. Range currently…
Chesapeake Energy has obtained City approval for a “master drilling plan” that lays out plans to drill 69 horizontal wells from seven drilling locations within the City of Fort Worth. The plan identifies the drilling locations and the gathering lines, and how produced water will be disposed of. The plan shows how…