Saturday, July 31, 2010

Flower Mound Residents File Lawsuit To Stop Gas Drilling Permit on Hilliard Field

Friday, July 30th, two Flower Mound residents filed suit against the Town of Flower Mound to stop a permit for drilling on the Hilliard Airfield located on 2499, south of 3040.

The permit would allow up to 24 wells, along with compressors and numerous tank batteries to be located in the middle of a highly populated area of town and close to two schools.

"We believe that our case will show that since 2005, the [town] council majority removed many of the protections provided by Flower Mound's original oil and gas ordinances," plaintiff Virginia Simonson said in a prepared statement. "We also plan to show that the protections were removed without the full understanding or majority support of Flower Mound residents."

A permit to drill was previously denied by the Oil and Gas Board of Appeals because it required at least 4 variances. Since then, the landowner, Mr. Hilliard, cut down trees, capped his well, moved the pad site closer to the highway and other changes to accommodate a pad site.

Simonson feels the Hilliard case shows the inconsistencies in the town's rules. She said the town shouldn't have allowed the trees to be removed while the gas application was pending and allowed the approval process to be circumvented.

To the read article in the Dallas Morning News click here

Many residents feel that the present Oil & Gas Ordinance does not offer enough protections for the residents. They believe the previous local government did not do enough to protect the town.

In May of this year, the residents elected new officials. The NFL team has been doing what they can to undo what had been done but their hands have been tied. They inherited a pile of crap when it comes to regulating the industry. Since being in office they have adopted the moratorium petition, appointed an Oil & Gas Advisory Board, worked hard to get 24/7 air monitoring in the town and other positive changes. They have still have the support of the majority of the people of Flower Mound.

The Hilliard situation is happening now! The Oil and Gas Advisory Board will not submit recommendations for changes to the ordinance for at least 90 days. At that time, the town will listen to citizen input and review the recommendations before adopting any new regulations.

To donate to the Flower Mound Defense Fund click here

Click here for press release.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

It is time for residents from all BS (Barnett Shale) towns start to stand up to the gas companies. If it has to be done by suing the town first, then so be it.
I am still a huge supporter of NFL too and don't feel this lawsuit is a reflection on thier ability to run a town. They did inherit a pile of $#!% from the old government.

teleman said...

Williams has substantial financial/legal resources. Think the ACLU might take on this issue?

jimsplace said...

It may be time for other cities like Fort Worth to consider doing what Flower Mound is doing. Fort Worth has been ravaged and degraded to something more like an industrial slum.

Kudos to Flower Mound in taking the bull by the horns. The Fort Worth leaders have taken its horns and put them where the sun doesn't shine.

EPA said...

I just saw a commercial on TV.
"Save Texas Water" and don't water your lawn like a lake.

Ok ... but how much water is DESTROYED by F***ing Fracing ???

The water we save on our lawns is nothing compared to the millions of gallons of water destoyed by Fracing.

Anonymous said...

anyone pro natural gas drilling should view this movie: http://gaslandthemovie.com/