Category Archive: Environment

1. Investigation Ongoing in Williston Oilfield Services Fire

   July 25, 2014 Leave a Comment

   Federal officials have joined state and local officials to further investigate the fire and explosion that occurred on Tuesday at Red River Supply – an oilfield services company located in Williston. Officials are monitoring air quality and overseeing the clean-up efforts, which could take weeks. The fire was managed by Williston’s volunteer fire department. Earthen dams have been built to contain the water used to contain and extinguish the fire. Read more in the Dickinson Press.

2. Lessons to be Learned from Tioga Spill

   May 16, 2014 Leave a Comment

   Steve and Patricia Jensen are urging the pipeline industry and state regulators to learn as much as they can from the pipeline spill on their property last year.  Tesoro is undertaking a two-year remediation plan, under the direction of state and federal officials.  Investigators believe the pipeline leak may have been caused by a lightning strike or other electrical malfunction or occurrence.  Read more in the Tioga Tribune.

    

3. EPA releases new guidelines for fracking materials

   February 24, 2014 Leave a Comment

   New guidelines were recently released by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for companies using hydraulic fracking. The new guidelines require those companies to acquire an additional permit before they can use diesel or kerosene in their hydraulic fracturing. The new permit would add a minimum of 76 additional days to the permit process. North Dakota state officials reported that there are very few companies that have used either diesel or kerosene since April 2012. See the Dickinson Press for the full article.

4. Oil spill cleanup will require more time

   February 14, 2014 Leave a Comment

   Representatives from the North Dakota Health Dept. are expecting cleanup efforts on a September pipeline leak to take two years. The leak took place near Tioga, ND and spilled over 20,000 barrels of oil. It was one of the largest spills in state history but has been contained. Tesoro Corp, the pipeline’s owner, has submitted plans on how cleanup will be handled. To date, over 6,000 barrels of oil have been recovered. Read more about spill cleanup from the Bismarck Tribune.

5. New decision supports coal ash recycling

   February 14, 2014 Leave a Comment

   The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently reached a favorable decision regarding coal ash use for construction materials. A representative from EPA’s Office of Solid Waste said that “the protective reuse of coal ash advances sustainability by saving valuable resources, reducing costs, and lessening environmental impacts.” See more from Bloomberg.com.

6. Onshore Interactive Wind Turbine Map Available

   February 14, 2014 Leave a Comment

   A new, interactive map is now available and was created by the U.S. Geological Survey. The map is part of the President’s Climate Action Plan, which calls for the U.S. Dept of the Interior to permit 20,000 megawatts of renewable energy by 2020. The turbine map illustrates turbines installed through July 2013, and shows actual location plus or minus 10 meters. It also shows make and model of each turbine. The final map shows over 47,000 onshore turbine locations. Read more from the Bismarck Tribune.

7. Quadrennial Energy Review launched

   January 21, 2014 Leave a Comment

   Recently, President Obama ordered a comprehensive review of the country’s existing energy infrastructure. This task force is called the Quadrennial Energy Review (QRE) and they will spend the next year studying what is required for “transporting, transmitting, and delivering energy.” A major factor influencing the decision to create the task force is that domestic oil production has gone up 50 percent since the President took office in 2009, and natural gas production is at its highest ever. QRE has a deadline of January 2015 to report its findings. Read more from Reuters.

8. Symposium set to discuss EPA Carbon Regulations

   January 21, 2014 Leave a Comment

   Proposed EPA regulations on carbon will be discussed January 22 at a symposium hosted by the North Dakota Public Service Commission. The state Commissioners, Brian Kalk, Randy Christmann and Julie Fedorchak will oversee the agenda, which includes discussion from the EPA Region 8 Administrator. In addition, the public is welcome to join the discussion from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm. In regard to the new regulations, Commissioner Randy Christmann says that “This poses a huge threat to our state’s lignite industry and the more than 20,000 hardworking people employed by it.” Read the full news release on the PSC’s website.

9. Cold temps bad news for oil production

   January 10, 2014 Leave a Comment

   Cold weather had returned to North Dakota, and that is putting a halt on oil production in the Bakken. Bakken crude is known to freeze into a plastic-like substance when temperatures drop below minus 40 degrees. The cold weather also upsets traffic flow and interrupts drilling operations, and had an influence from northern Alberta, Canada, down into Texas. Consequences of the cold weather have already pushed the price of Canadian crude to five-month highs. Read more from the Fargo Forum.

10. Attorney General’s office releases list of ‘extraordinary’ sites

    December 23, 2013 Leave a Comment

    ND Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem recently announced a list of 18 ‘extraordinary’ sites in North Dakota and a draft of rules to help provide extra protection for the areas. Although the development of the list is not intended to “prevent the development of any minerals in those areas,” the rules will help create a more formalized process that companies need to observe when requesting drilling permits for those areas. A representative from the Dacotah Chapter of the Sierra Club said that the rules are “a huge step forward from where we were…a year ago.” He said that they would like to see additional sites placed on that list before it is finalized. See the Grand Forks Herald for more details.