LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas State Police and two state regulatory agencies are looking into allegations that a company improperly dumped waste fluid from hydraulic fracturing at 31 sites in four counties.
Since June 14, spills have been reported at natural-gas well sites belonging to XTO Energy, a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corp., in Cleburne, Independence, Faulkner, and White counties, said Katherine Benenati, spokesman for the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality.
She said the department has not been able to confirm which company is responsible for the spills.
“At this point we’re holding XTO responsible,” Benenati said, adding that XTO Energy reported some of the spills.
Jeff Neu, spokesman for XTO Energy, said the company is working with the department to remedy the spills.
“Arkansas environmental and law-enforcement agencies and XTO Energy are investigating the apparent improper disposal of produced water by a third party at XTO well pads in several Arkansas counties,” he said in an e-mail. “We are working with state officials to determine the responsible party for these improper actions.”
Benenati said the department expects XTO Energy to have a plan for remedial action by late September.
She said the department is still evaluating sites and cannot confirm that each one involved hydraulic fracturing fluid.
Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, which occurs after a well is drilled, is the process of injecting thousands of gallons of water, sand and chemicals into a well to separate rock and release natural gas.
In Arkansas, fluid that has been used for fracking can only be transported to a permitted well for re-use in the well drilling or completion process, a permitted off-site temporary storage facility, a permitted surface-disposal facility, or a permitted injection well disposal facility.
The fluid cannot be released or discharged onto the ground surface or into bodies of water, according to a notice of violation issued by the Arkansas Oil and Gas commission concerning one of the reported spills.
On June 28, the Oil and Gas Commission sent a notice of violation to R&J Trucking Co. for what it said was the dumping of about 3,780 gallons of “exploration and production fluids” at a natural-gas well site leased by XTO Energy.
The notice, which ordered the company to halt all transportation activities in the sate, said the incident was reported by the Cleburne County sheriff’s office.
The sheriff ’s office declined to send the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette a copy of the incident report, citing that it was exempt from the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act because state police have an open investigation.
The Oil and Gas Commission’s notice of violation states that, based on the sheriff’s office report, “Manifest tickets form R&J indicated the tank load of Exploration and Production Fluid was delivered to the XTO Spier’s well site for reuse, however, XTO records indicate the load of fluid was never received at that site. Commission inspections of the O.B. Moss #1-32H well site confirmed fluids had been dumped at the site.”
R&J Trucking no longer has a permit to operate in Arkansas because the company did not reapply for a permit, said Shane Khoury, deputy director and general counsel of the Oil and Gas Commission.
He said there should be no health concerns about the spills. “If remedied properly, there won’t be future concerns,” he said.
Khoury said R&J Trucking asked commission Director Lawrence Bengal to review the notice of violation in June.
In a letter sent to the company, Bengal said the discharge was reported by the Cleburne County sheriff ’s office as an act of vandalism and that about 90 barrels of exploration and production fluid was discharged at the site on the surface of the ground, and an inspection by the commission confirmed the report.
In the letter, Bengal said manifests indicate 11 unaccounted loads of fluid in June and requested that the company pay a total civil penalty of $24,750 for the discharged fluid to be paid to the commission.
The company has sent a request for an appeal to the commission, Khoury said. The appeal is expected to be heard at the Commission’s monthly meeting in September, he said.
A lawyer for R&J Trucking could not be reached for comment Friday.
State police also are investigating claims that water used from hydraulic fracturing was dumped on a site in Cleburne County, spokesman Bill Sadler said.
One drilling and one trucking company are being questioned after the Department of Environmental Quality requested state police help in investigating an incident that was reported to the Cleburne County sheriff, he said.
“The department has assigned a special agent from the criminal investigation division to assist the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality in its investigation into allegations that fracking water may have been discharged in violation of state regulations or laws,” Sadler said in an e-mail.
He would not comment on which companies are involved or on details of the incident, as it is an ongoing investigation.
Holly Meyer, chief deputy prosecuting attorney for Cleburne County, said that besides penalties from the commission, there are also state and local laws concerning dumping of waste.
Business, Pages 33 on 09/01/2012