Spilliams....Repeat Offender

There has been yet another spill out in West Flower Mound at a Williams site. 

According to information from the town of Flower Mound, (see page 8-9 of drilling ordinance) this is the 6th spill at a Williams gas drilling pad site "REPORTED" to the town. Of course it rained very hard on Saturday night and who knows if any of the spill spread from the site.

Let's go back to the summer of 2009 when many West Flower Mound residents came to Town Hall professing their love and admiration for Williams. The cause of the latest spill? 
"The spill occurred due to a failed weld in a line transporting fluids." 

The West Flower Mound residents begged for the town to allow Williams the opportunity to run waste water pipelines from their pad sites to a Centralized Collection Facility. Some of us argued that accidents happen like.....welds failing! Williams is NOT a "good neighbor". In fact if you and I continued to spill toxic waste, we would be heavily fined or in jail!!!

But folks, it isn't just spills. In a little over a year and a half, close to 90 odor and health complaints have been made to the TCEQ just in Flower Mound alone. Every one of those complaints has been at or near gas drilling production sites. A majority of those complaints have been near Williams sites.

Cancer rates in the Barnett Shale Counties are on the rise. 


If Texas Railroad Commission is wondering why so many people are refusing to sign leases resulting in Rule 37 applications and Forced Pooling applications, they need to look no further than our backyards. Contamination, air quality issues and health issues being reported by the citizens living on the Barnett Shale are clearly being overlooked. Many feel our state agencies responsible for regulating the industry are not doing their job. Not signing a lease has become the only way residents can "try" to protect themselves. 

Good neighbors or the neighbors from hell?

I

Could LISD Allow Hilliard And Other Sites Near Schools To Become Another Scenic Rd.?

Just this week, news surfaced about Titan Operating filing a request for a Rule 37 exception to come within 47 feet of LISD's Killough Campus (located near McGee and 407 in Lewisville). That isn't a shock but what is alarming is Titan is still actively making offers to LISD for leasing their land. This article in the Flower Mound Leader says 1 million and an post on Whosplayin mentioned 1 1/2 million.


Did you know that your children's health and safety may be sold for 1 to 1 1/2 million dollars? 

We don't know about anyone else but we can't think of an amount that would be worth it. It would be thoughtless and careless to allow more gas drilling near our schools. It has been highly publicized that LISD has been approached over and over again to sign gas leases. In fact, LISD signed gas leases in 2007 but luckliy those leases expired. Are some of our elected School Board Members considering signing again?

We already know that not signing a lease is the best protection from gas drilling occurring near our schools and homes. Now with the supersized padsites, the less signed leases can mean less wells. It has been proven over and over again. This has been debated before. 

In some cases drilling may be already going on but with more leased acreage comes more wells, more tanks, more compressors. With all this equipment comes more emissions and traffic.  

It becomes a big pot of toxic soup. If you don't believe us just drive out to Scenic Dr. and 1171 in West Flower Mound. 


Frankly, the fact that people are worried about LISD "leaving money on the table" or "getting screwed out of royalties", is sickening and insulting by putting greed before our children. The oil and gas industry really doesn't care about our children. If they really wanted to help out Texas schools, they wouldn't be requesting 185 million dollars in "tax refunds" that will require almost half of the refund money come from Texas school funds.

If LISD does NOT sign a lease for the property adjacent to the south of Hilliard Field, NO additional drilling can occur to the South or South East. We believe that would eliminate 5-6 wells based on a 20-24 well estimate given to the Flower Mound Oil and Gas Board of Appeals in May 2010. We also know that many residents to the East, North East and South West have not signed leases. That will eliminate even more wells or at least force Titan to apply for many more Rule 37 exceptions. 

Do you want this near your child's school?

LISD must continue to protest the Rule 37 like the town of Flower Mound did in the Rule 37 request by Williams. Williams ended up withdrawing their Rule 37 request. 

This is a ploy to get LISD to sign leases. LISD needs to stand up to the gas companies! 


Speak up now before it is too late. 

Go to the LISD website and find out the dates and times for the School Board Meetings. 

Contact the School Board Members and let them know how you feel.

If you are interested in getting the word out to your friends and neighbors by an organized effort, please contact us at  stopthedrilling@gmail.com

When Doctors Are Concerned, We Should All Be Concerned

"More than 250 pediatricians, family practitioners, endocrinologists, oncologists and other doctors, along with the Medical Societies of at least seven upstate counties and the regional office of the American Academy of Pediatricians, wrote to Governor Cuomo, warning that the state of New York has failed to analyze public health impacts of hydraulic fracturing in its rush to approve permits for drilling."

Click here for info and to read the letter.

Those of us living on the Barnett Shale have been asking why comprehensive health studies were never performed before all the drilling and fracking begin close to 10 years ago. Of course, our Texas Department of Health Services likes to make excuses for all the increase of health issues in north Texas.

Click here for map of the massive increase of wells since 2003 in the Barnett Shale.

Dallas Citizen Group Releases Recommendations For Gas Drilling

Dallas resident Raymond Crawford presented the Dallas City Council with recommendations put together by local citizen groups. They are quite impressive. Great job Dallas.

We will keep our fingers crossed that the Dallas Drilling Task Force and City Council accept and vote to implement all of the recommendations.

Click here to read the recommendations.

Titan Operating Tells TRC OneThing, Tells Local Press Something Else

In a letter to the Texas Railroad Commission, dated May 20, 2011, Titan Operating stated they would like the TRC to expedite their Rule 37 ruling because "at this time, however, the Commission's decision on the Hilliard South Unit application is more urgently needed to allow Titan an opportunity to satisfy it's lease and conservation obligations".

However, in an article dated August 12, 2011 for the Flower Mound leader, Titan"s Mr. Schumacher said Titan does not have any expiring leases resulting from the Rule 37 process.                                                                                                         

So why the urgency if no leases were going to expire?

As of today, the well might not be producing so "held-by-production" may not apply. 

Which statement is accurate? You can't have it both ways Titan.

Get Ready For More Birdie And Butterfly Ads

Yes, now Conoco Phillips is launching a drill baby drill campaign.

It seems all the real life stories of contamination, health issues, and decreased property values are proving to be a huge obstacle for the gas industry to overcome.

Click here to read article.