Out-of-Control Gas Well Finally Capped and Christmas Observed

Duane Nichols — Thu, 25 Dec 2014 01:47:05 +0000

Methane Geyser Capped — Flammable gas had spewed from gas well 10 days

Santa, Mrs. Claus and 7 Elves arrested at Seneca Lake in NY State

From an Article by Casey Junkins, Wheeling Intelligencer, December 24, 2014

Sardis, OH — After 10 days of being displaced, people living near Magnum Hunter’s Stalder well pad can spend Christmas at home as workers capped the huge well that had been spouting methane into the air since December 13th.

Now, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Agency will work with the company to determine the cause of the blowout at the Triad Hunter Stalder well, which led an undetermined amount of methane to escape into the atmosphere. Triad Hunter is the local operating subsidiary of Houston, Texas-based Magnum Hunter.

“ODNR will do a full investigation to determine the cause and ensure proper mechanical integrity of the well before the company can move forward with operations,” Bethany McCorkle, spokeswoman for the natural resources department, said.

Magnum Hunter officials said Tuesday they do not believe the well blowout caused environmental damage because 97 percent of the gas released was methane. They also indicate the company plans to have all wells on the Stalder pad sending natural gas to market next month.

Monroe County Emergency Management Director Phillip Keevert said during the first several days of the ordeal, the damaged wellhead led the escaping gas to remain close to the ground, which he said created a more dangerous situation. Once Wild Well Control employees removed the old wellhead, the methane shot directly upward, similar to hot water spewing from a geyser. Keevert said this was not as dangerous to the residents, so he reduced the evacuation area to three-quarters of a mile Saturday.

As those affected can now celebrate the holidays at home and emergency responders can finally get a break, environmental regulators and company officials must determine what went wrong with the well that has a vertical shaft about two miles deep and a horizontal leg about one mile long.

According to Magnum, company and contract employees had to excavate the area around the wellhead while continuously spraying fresh water on the escaping gas to reduce the risk of ignition. After arriving from Texas, workers with Wild Well Control began the relatively slow process of replacing the entire wellhead assembly.

Magnum officials also said they maintain “customary control of well insurance coverage,” which they believe will cover all losses.

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Let me begin by wishing you all Happy Holidays from Western Penna. !

Many of you have been following the ongoing story of EQT’s fracking on Trax Farms (now being called ‘Frax Farms’) and the serious issues being faced by neighbors living close by. It’s kind of like the movie Groundhog Day but this is no comedy for them or their families.

Last night’s supervisor’s meeting brought about the latest update to their story, with discussions about excessive fracking noise, township decibel limits, rotten egg odors, and vibrations. Two policemen were posted at the full house meeting.

Apparently someone complained from a past meeting of whether someone is allowed to record a public meeting or not. As you will see in this video, it is the chairman’s impression after consulting legal counsel that someone openly recording for all to see is A-OK, but it is illegal for someone to record a meeting without announcing they are doing so first. The solicitor later comments that he did not know of any restrictions on recording a public meeting.

You will also get to hear from the individuals living on Cardox Road and beyond, including Gary Baumgardner whose family was supported by the recent petition for EQT to stop fracking on Christmas Day so his grandbaby could visit for dinner. One lady, who lives several miles away, commented that she can hear the noise with her windows closed.

The township is now ready to take more serious action, as they discuss further here:

http://youtu.be/XKxvmHOFi8E

Bob Donnan, Peters Township (McMurray), Washington County, PA

Morgan County OH Well Erupts with Gas & Drilling Mud

Duane Nichols — Mon, 12 May 2014 21:06:21 +0000

Gas Well Erupts Near Ohio River Valley

Seven residents evacuated due to danger of explosion

From an Article by Dean Narciso, Columbus Dispatch, May 8, 2014

A Morgan County shale well being drilled in preparation for fracking began leaking on Sunday, forcing the evacuation of nearby residents.

State and federal environmental emergency-response teams and the drilling company finally contained the mess yesterday, but not before it reached a nearby creek.

The leak was discovered on Sunday, when about 10 gallons per minute of oily drilling fluid, called mud, gushed from the drill site, according to an Ohio Environmental Protection Agency report filed on Monday.

According to a U.S. EPA report, a “pocket of unexpected natural gas was encountered” during drilling. That caused overpressurization and failure of the well head. One hundred barrels of drilling mud spilled from the well on Sunday, according to the well’s owner, PDC Energy of Colorado, which said some of it reached an unnamed creek near Beverly, Ohio.

An unknown amount of wet gas — a mixture containing crude oil — also escaped. As of noon on Tuesday, 330 barrels of oil and water had been collected at the site, according to the U.S. EPA. The drilling mud was a 75 percent synthetic oil blend.

Drilling mud flooded the pad and flowed down an earthen platform into storm-water-control drainage ditches and into the creek. The drilling rig and pad were installed about a year ago on farmland owned by Orin D. Palmer, who grows corn, soybeans and hay near the site.

The company said yesterday that it had drilled about 7,000 feet down and had turned its drill and gone about 1,000 feet horizontally when it struck the gas. Yesterday, 75 to 100 workers and dozens of trucks were on Palmer’s property, working to mop up the spill, said Andy Maguire, on-scene coordinator for the U.S. EPA. Palmer was advised to leave but didn’t.

Timothy Funk, 53, lives nearby and can see the drilling rig from his house. He said his sister, Cynthia, 55, also lives nearby with their mother. The families learned nothing about the spill or possible dangers until Monday. “What we really want is a contact person from that company to tell us if our lives are ever in danger,” Cynthia Funk said.

PDC, with branch offices in West Virginia and Marietta, Ohio, operates 15 oil and gas wells in southeastern Ohio and plans to drill 18 more this year. It has had no similar incidents in Ohio, said Michael Edwards, senior director of investor relations for PDC. “There were no injuries. We have contained it. And we’ve made significant recovery of fluids.”

According to news reports, the company agreed to pay a $35,000 fine last June after one of its wells near Fort Collins, Colo., released about 84,000 gallons of “flowback” fracking solution. “Obviously, the very first thing is safety to personnel and anyone in the area,” Edwards said. “ And we minimize what impacts we have to the environment.”

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which issues permits for drilling operations, described the incident as rare. The agency will review the spill within a few days and determine the integrity of the well, said spokesman Mark Bruce.

Teresa Mills, of the Center for Health, Environment & Justice, said she fears that these spills occur more often than the public hears. “It is shameful that citizens don’t have a way to get this information,” she said. “It’s not on any state Web page.

Frack Check WV » eruption

Out-of-Control Gas Well Finally Capped and Christmas Observed

Morgan County OH Well Erupts with Gas & Drilling Mud