Barnett Shale producers draw heat on air quality

Industry leaders reject criticism saying it continues to reduce emissions

BY STEVE QUINN FOR GREENING OF OIL

The industry has long recognized the Barnett Shale natural gas field in North Texas as a model for drilling techniques that produce gas while reducing the environmental footprint. But now oil and gas executives are defending themselves against concerns over air quality and potentially high emission levels in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

The area spanning 12 counties is becoming the centerpiece to an argument over whether natural gas exploration companies do enough to contain harmful emissions. It’s driven largely by a recent state study that has some community leaders concerned about emissions such as benzene.

Benzene is a carcinogen that has been linked to leukemia among those with prolonged exposure; in this case, oil and gas workers.

Industry leaders say they take special steps that not only contain emissions but also enable them to produce more gas, a win-win situation. And research is also ongoing to further reduce the impact to air quality; steps like running a rig off a power grid rather than diesel fuel.

Critics: industry can do better

But critics, even federal officials, say the companies could be doing more and site the state review as their argument.

“The state seems to be engaged in a deliberate and thoughtful process, but we do have concerns that they are already finding high levels of benzene,” said Al Armendariz, a regional director for the Environmental Protection Agency. “There are many things the oil and gas industry could be doing, which they are not to reduce emissions.”

One, he says, is cleaning out or removing condensate tanks that emit hydrocarbons into the air.

“Cars and trucks are getting (their emissions) inspected right across the street from where the condensate tanks are allowed to vent hydrocarbons and bake in the sun,” he said.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality tested 94 sites outside Fort Worth last year. The agency found two with extremely high levels of benzene, which were deemed the result of mechanical problems and were quickly fixed.

The agency concluded there was “no cause for concern.”

It’s a point that needs heeding, said Chesapeake Energy Corp.’s John Satterfield, director of environmental and regulatory affairs.

“We need to take out the emotion and the naysayers, and we need to place things into context,” he said. “We need to take a look at the data. The overwhelming point is they didn’t find any issues without taking isolated issues and using broad strokes across the Barnett Shale as a whole.”

State says no need for panic

Michael Honeycutt, director of the commission’s toxicology division, agreed saying he sees no cause for immediate panic but, he said, long-term monitoring is a must.

“There is no need for widespread alarm; it’s not at every facility and it’s not extremely high levels,” he said. “We’ve got time to take a measured approach, a deliberative approach to change the air quality.

Still, “this could turn out to be an issue,” Honeycutt said. “There is a density of wells and related equipment in heavily populated areas.”

What industry is currently doing to reduce emissions

The industry offers several techniques that continue to reduce hydrocarbons from being emitted, oil and gas officials said.

One is known as “green completions,” which enables companies to separate water from the gas after completing a hydraulic fracturing of a well without emitting any methane into the air. Officials from Devon Energy, Barnett’s largest producer, say this has helped reduce emissions by nearly 13 billion cubic feet since 2005.

A second technique is a low-emissions valve. Because raw natural gas needs to be free from oil and water before being piped into a processing plant, the valve serves as a regulatory device. By regulating the venting of hydrocarbons, each valve vent control is akin to taking 16 cars off the highways per year, Devon officials said.

A third is called a vapor recovery unit. This grabs vaporized materials while they are being pushed out of a tank or truck. In the case of gas, it catches vapors from empty trucks; recovery means further use of the materials by returning them to the tank or pipeline.

Air quality a touchy issue in Texas

In Texas, air quality is a touchy issue. Many metropolitan areas, including the Fort Worth-Dallas area, are trying to meet federal air quality mandates, which have been a daily concern for policy makers.

Several years ago a plan to build 10 coal-fired power plants was met with heavy resistance from big-city mayors, so air quality is high on the radar.

This makes the Barnett Shale a convenient target said David Burnett, an associate research scientist at Texas A&M University.

“In the Dallas-Fort Worth area, drilling is a minor part of the emissions; auto traffic is a major part,” Burnett said. “But companies know they have got to get ahead of the curve and they are going to have to be active because they need to address this issue in other areas besides the Barnett Shale.”

Burnett is with the university’s Global Petroleum Research Institute and a founder of Environmentally Friendly Drilling. He said he is testing the prospects of running a drilling rig off a local power grid, a concept that is currently too costly.

It’s also not something that can be done at every field such as those off shore or fields too far from a grid.

“The technology is here, but there are three big decisions,” Burnett said. “The economics and cost effectiveness; what are the environmental issues; and what is it the public wants, which doesn’t always make environmental sense.”

Meanwhile, area leaders, like those in Fort Worth, say they would like a few more answers before drawing new conclusions. After all, we’re talking about an industry that’s been a jobs boon and dividend for landowners leasing property to exploration companies.

Susan Alanis, Fort Worth’s director of planning, said the city wants to do another study and would like for all sides to agree on a methodology. “Right now we are just committed to get everybody on the same page,” she said.

“My hope is by the summertime, we’ll have a better sense of what we are dealing with.”

Link of interest

Texas Commission on Environmental Quality

Barnett Shale Energy Education Council

Contact Steve Quinn at squinn@gmail.com