Texas Sharon's Bluedaze

Fracking News

TCEQ’s Barnett Shale Air Study in Fort Worth Stinks

By

Nice try TCEQ but something is stinky about your air study in Fort Worth.

  • This test was conducted in a rush after the previous appearance by a TCEQ representative at Council resulted in a stern lecture by Mikey. This performance appeared to serve two purposes 1) send a message to the public that results were important to him, and 2) they better be the “right” results.
  • Because of the rush TCEQ had to conduct the tests in the winter time (very convenient)
  • One day before the testing began in Fort Worth (Dec. 14, 2009) a TCEQ spokesperson admitted at a public meeting in DISH, TX that they didn’t know how and didn’t have funding or equipment to do these tests in DISH and would therefore have the tests done by industry for DISH.
  • This had also been previously admitted in September by TCEQ.
  • So who did the tests in Fort Worth on Dec 15, 16, and 17 and who paid for them?
  • Why wasn’t the public told this information?
  • How many of the 126 pad sites “tested” were actually producing gas at the time the “tests” were done?
  • For the 8 sites at which actual air samples were taken and tested why were the samples taken at the fence line at ground level? (The plume originating at the tank vents does not disperse close to the tank, and the video showed it hovering in a layer about 20 ft above ground.)
  • The freezing point of benzene is about 42 degees Fahrenheit.*
  • What was the temperature at the time/place of the tests?

(I can’t take credit for the bullet points, they were provided by a highly intelligent scientist type.) Benzene links provided by Mike, a reader. Link 1, Link 2

* The recorded Forth Worth temperatures for the dates, according to the weather channel website were:

These air temperatures for the 15th and the16th would be way low for there to be any appreciable liquid benzene in a tank that sat quietly all night. However, there is no way for us to know now what the temperature of the liquid coming into the tank was if production was occurring.
~Really smart person

I’ll take full credit for this next part:

Today my favorite guy sent out an EDuKaShUn email. He wanted you to know that benzene is in soft drinks and the Big Gas Mafia Wise Guys are making sure they are complying with the TCEQ rules.

Feel Better?

And he wants to make sure you all buy a natural gas powered vehicle so you can drive yourself to those cancer treatments in style.

Suspend all disbelief. Step into the bubble

Barnett Shale Asthma Rates Staggering

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. Anonymous says

    If you want "clean" test results, get the WCEQ to test. Their results are guaranteed to be low. Couldn't be better for Big Gas! Have seen it happen many times.

  3. Mike says

    Here's the site of the US FDA on benzene in soft drinks:

    http://web.archive.org/web/20080326000127/www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/benzqa.html

    More Wikipedia on benzene:

    The United States Environmental Protection Agency has set the maximum permissible level of benzene in drinking water at 0.005 milligrams per liter (0.005 mg/L). The EPA requires that spills or accidental releases into the environment of 10 pounds (4.5 kg) or more of benzene be reported to the EPA.

    The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has set a permissible exposure limit of 1 part of benzene per million parts of air (1 ppm) in the workplace during an 8-hour workday, 40-hour workweek. The short term exposure limit for airborne benzene is 5 ppm for 15 minutes.

    Note ppb is parts per billion, and ppm is parts per million. So, the air in DISH is still more of a benzene threat than sodas!!

  4. charlie.murphy says

    Thanks to Chris Hawes for having the courage to continue to bring us information about the most significant event in the history of the Barnett Shale! The TCEQ is providing a well rehearsed and predetermined pile of horse dung. It was no accident that the TCEQ decided to test in some of the coldest weather Texas has seen in decades. Their allegiance to the gas industry has “promoted” them to the most irresponsible governmental agency in Texas. Things are not “fine and dandy” and eventually the truth will prevail. The only question is, how many people will suffer and become seriously ill because of the treachery of TCEQ. The gas industry knows how to spend their dollars and they expect to get a good “let’s make it look real” effort from every and any regulatory agency. Right now, TCEQ is their FAVORITE SON!

  6. Santosh Collison says

    You guys sound just like Al Gore, trying to snow people with this bullcrap about Benzene etc. I don't see any problem with the wells I see in Fort Worth area. I have seen some in residential neighborhoods with absolutely no impact on the surroundingd.

    We are in a heap of trouble and must not be stopped by some gorans.

  9. autoka says

    You can not spend money to do tests to prove a point. Worse try to manupulate the outcome.