Tag: well setbacks

The fossil fuel industry killed Colorado’s Prop 112 – voters say no to larger setbacks for oil and gas

This article discusses how the fossil fuel industry killed Colorado’s Prop 112 – voters say no to larger setbacks for oil and gas. Industry spent tens of millions of dollars against Proposition 112 and for Amendment 74.

Proposition 112, the initiative that would dramatically increase oil and gas drilling setbacks from homes, businesses and waterways, was decisively defeated Tuesday night following a contentious campaign in which the industry spent tens of millions of dollars to derail the measure.

As of 10 p.m., the measure was losing by a 57 percent to 43 percent margin with more than 75 percent of the vote tallied, according to the Associated Press.

Amendment 74, which would allow property owners to seek compensation from government any time a government action or regulation devalues a person’s property, was also facing defeat, trailing 54 percent to 46 percent. The amendment needed 55 percent of the vote to become law.

Colorado residents, environmental group sue city over plan for 84 wells

This article discusses a lawsuit filed by residents and environmental group sue Bloomfield, CO, over the city’s plan for drilling 84 new fracking wells. The lawsuit claims city manager violated city charter requiring protecting public health, safety.

After more than a year of opposing drilling in Broomfield, a residents’ group and an environmental organization said Tuesday they are suing the city over its approval of a plan for 84 wells.

Announcement of the lawsuit, filed in district court by Broomfield-based Residents Rights and WildEarth Guardians, comes two weeks before Colorado voters will decide whether to mandate larger buffers between wells and occupied buildings. Proposition 112 would require new wells be drilled a minimum of 2,500 feet from homes, schools and water sources.

The current setback is 500 feet from homes and 1,000 feet from densely occupied buildings, such as hospitals and schools.

Study: Fracking in Pennsylvania is too close to residents for safety

This article discusses the health impacts of living near fracking wells.

Regulations on how close fracking facilities can be to buildings and homes in Pennsylvania are too lax to adequately protect public health, according to a new study.

The study, undertaken by the Southwest Pennsylvania Environmental Health Project (EHP) and published last week in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS One, asked a panel of 18 experts— including healthcare providers, public health practitioners, environmental advocates, researchers and scientists—to compare minimum setback requirements against emerging research about the health impacts of fracking.

Unconventional oil and gas operations include hydraulic fracturing, or fracking—in which a high pressure mix of water, chemicals and sand are injected into wells to release oil or gas—and its related infrastructure, like well pads and natural gas compressor stations.

Currently, horizontally drilled well pads are required to be at least 500 feet away from the nearest occupied building in Pennsylvania. For natural gas compressor stations and processing plants, the minimum goes up to 750 feet, but those minimums can be waived by property owners, and some fracking facilities operate within 300 feet of occupied buildings in residential areas in the state.

Of the 18 experts the study consulted, 16 concluded that, in order to protect public health, the setback distance for a fracking facility, such as a well pad or compressor station, should be at least one-quarter mile (1,320 feet) from the nearest occupied building.

Tech firm uses pressure data to quickly provide details on fracture results

A better look at what lies beneath the surface continues to be a target for oil industry research and development efforts. A stronger grasp of the subsurface will lead operators to the best spots in the reservoir, better understand the rock’s fractures to allow them to more effectively hydraulically fracture the well, and better produce the well.

http://www.mrt.com/business/oil/article/Tech-firm-uses-pressure-data-to-quickly-provide-12450646.php