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Drilling in a flood plain: Dallas look at the fun you missed

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WELD COUNTY, CO – SEPTEMBER 14: A floating tank leaks an unknown fluid on flooded farm Weld County Colorado Saturday morning, September 14, 2103. (Photo By Andy Cross/The Denver Post). See more at denverpost.com

The Dallas City Plan Commission should be feeling pretty good right about now. They voted to deny permits to drill and build a gas processing plant in the park land flood plain. Colorado residents aren’t so lucky because in Weld County the flood plains that is filled with oil & gas wells is now covered with water. Surprise, Surprise.

The water is washing away under pipelines causing them to separate and leak. “Oil drums, tanks and other industrial debris mixed into the swollen river flowing northeast.”

In a statement, Gary Wockner, of Clean Water Action, said “Fracking and operating oil and gas facilities in floodplains is extremely risky. Flood waters can topple facilities and spread oil, gas, and cancer-causing fracking chemicals across vast landscapes making contamination and clean-up efforts exponentially worse and more complicated.” Denver Post

Facebook has a video of a well underwater.

Here is a video of Longmont.

We hope our friends in Colorado are safe. Lot of us downstreamers are watching.

About Sharon Wilson

Sharon Wilson is considered a leading citizen expert on the impacts of shale oil and gas extraction. She is the go-to person whether it’s top EPA officials from D.C., national and international news networks, or residents facing the shock of eminent domain and the devastating environmental effects of natural gas development in their backyards.

Comments

  1. Marc says

    There is a very good reason why they are called “floodplains” and there is an even better reason why no activity that uses hazardous chemicals should ever be allowed in a floodplain. The situation in Colorado is a prime example of exactly why so many of us are opposed to allowing drilling in Dallas parks and floodplains. The damage from these Colorado floods may well last many decades beyond the end of the floods.

    • Asper ACT says

      Demonizing corporations is easy, but does not solve the problem.

      It was government that was bribed to allow some to frack that land, and government has the green light from people, who believe government should determine such an extensively-affecting procedure.

      • Tom Lee Tom says

        Yes, but there is far too much money in Government, and a lot of that money is flooded into the government by corporations or individuals that run corporations which grants the companies/people total access of over some people in the government. While it’s true that we the people can still vote for change, there is something to be said about money being able to create fear through advertising and thus influence.

  2. Tim Ruggiero says

    I can hear the spin machine gearing up already…..”It’s a once every 500 years event…we cannot let our energy demand be dictated by highly unlikely events…..This is an Act of God, no one can anticipate these types of events….”

    • BCuz says

      People like you and your silly belief system are what’s keeping us in war and furthering the destruction of the only thing you should worship, the earth. Go back to school and stop having children.

  3. Ruth says

    (This is more of a question than a comment); My Father (from the UK) just posted this article, i live in the Denver area and had no idea about the Weld fracking operation and how is is leaking contaminated substances leftover from the fracking process into the water.
    Can anyone be specific as to what those chemical substances are (apart from the oil and gas) and the likely effect on the water table and how far the contamination is likely to spread? Thanks.

  4. Tyler Estep says

    Your description says “A floating tank.” This tank is not the same kind of tank used by oil and gas companies in Colorado. I would like to know how you are so sure that this tank is from oil and gas based off a picture at that distance. (Yes I believe there was oil or gasoline of some sort in it but was probably a FARMERS tank.) So I would like you to clarify whether you know this picture is a storage tank from an oil and gas well site or if you are guessing??

    • TD says

      Sharon I would appreciate if you could answer and post the following comment and deny the previous post so that my full name is not posted. Thank you in advance.

  5. TD says

    Your description says “A floating tank.” This tank is not the same kind of tank used by oil and gas companies in Colorado. I would like to know how you are so sure that this tank is from oil and gas based off a picture at that distance. (Yes I believe there was oil or gasoline of some sort in it but was probably a FARMERS tank.) So I would like you to clarify whether you know this picture is a storage tank from an oil and gas well site or if you are guessing??

    • TXsharon says

      I know it’s as impossible to read all the comments as it is for me to answer all of them. I have already answered the floating tank question in another comment. If you go on the Facebook page and save the photo to your hard drive, you can zoom in and see a vent pipe. I have no proof what kind of tank it is other than what was stated on Facebook. But if you read the update in my blog post, you will see that there are many floating tanks.

      Bottom line: This tank was posted by a resident on Facebook as a leaking tank from an oil & gas well. If you look at the photos posted on the Facebook site and the ones in my updates, you will see quite a few floating and tipped tanks. So maybe this is a FARMERS tank (whatever that is and I was raised on a farm) but regardless, there are floating and tipped and leaking tanks.

      • Rick Wainio says

        So lets pretend all oil and gas production stops now. What would be your plan to continue powering America?

  6. TD says

    Yes I’m sure there is a vent pipe and the resident may have posted that its from an oil and gas site however if you were familiar with the industry in Weld County then you would be aware that the tanks are a tan color. I dont lean one way or another however I do value the truth in reporting.