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Southlake Approves First Gas Well SitePosted Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2011 By Nicholas Sakelaris
SOUTHLAKE — The City Council voted 5-2 early Wednesday morning to approve Southlake’s first
gas well site and officials with XTO Energy say a drilling rig could be on the Milner ranch by mid-April. XTO could drill
up to 18 wells on the pasture located at 651 E. Highland St. near Texas 114. The council also voted 5-2 to approve two variances
to the city’s drilling ordinance, including one that allows drilling within 1,000 feet of two houses on the Milner ranch.
Both homeowners submitted waivers consenting to the drilling. The long-awaited votes came at 1:40 a.m. with Councilman Al Zito
and Councilwoman Carolyn Morris voting no. Before drilling can begin, XTO will request construction
and drilling permits, which are handled by city staff. Council members addressed Walter Dueease,
senior regulator affairs coordinator for XTO Energy, on 86 different points, a tedious process that took more than four hours.
Dueease agreed to most of the council’s requests, including 24-hour air monitoring and restrictions on purchasing city
water during the summer months. The air monitoring will start when the first well is fractured,
a process that uses sand, water and chemicals to break up the shale rock to release the gas. The testing continues for a year
after the third well is fractured at which time the findings will be reviewed to see if more testing is needed. The council
debated whether to use continuous monitoring or periodic testing once a month. Councilwoman Pamela Muller, Morris and
Zito favored 24-hour monitoring to ensure that nearby residents are protected. "I would like us to consider continuous
monitoring for at least a year," Muller said. "I want to be assured that it's tested on a continuous basis."
Dueease said safeguards at the drill site mean the 24-hour testing would "literally serve no purpose." But
that didn’t persuade the council. "This would prove to all the residents that what you’re saying is
true," Zito said. Bringing thousands of gallons of water to the drill site posed another
problem, as city leaders don't want hundreds of tanker trucks traveling to the drill site but they are reluctant to sell city
water when there's peak demand in the summer. Instead, a compromise was reached where XTO Energy will be allowed to
purchase city water from Oct. 15 to May 1 and then use trucks for the rest of the year. The council
also set a three-year time limit on the specific use permit. If XTO Energy isn't done drilling the 18 wells by February 2014,
it will have to reapply. The permit also included a proposed pipeline route that will carry the
natural gas from the drill site to market. The route runs parallel to Texas 114. Two variances
to the city’s pipeline ordinance were approved 6-1 with Zito voting no. The variances allow the pipeline company, Energy
Transfer, to work on the pipeline 24 hours a day and place the pipeline in areas outside designated utility corridors.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011 by The City of Southlake
City
Adopts Gas Drilling MoratoriumAt the January 18, 2011 Southlake City Council meeting, the Council
passed a resolution to place a 180 day moratorium on the acceptance or processing of applications for well permits and specific
use permits to allow mineral extraction through oil and gas exploration or operations, and on acceptance or processing of
applications for regulated or unregulated pipeline permits within the corporate City limits. The
Council determined that the current regulations needed to be reviewed. The purpose is to address environmental and land
use compatibility issues created by oil and gas exploration and mineral extraction as well as development and transportation
activities. Council also determined the time had come to review and update the City’s
municipal ordinances and regulations to ensure the protection of the property interests of mineral estate owners as well as
the rights, opportunities and property interests of surface estate owners. City staff was directed
to review all appropriate environmental, planning materials and development regulations, and to suggest changes if appropriate
that would protect the interest of both mineral estate owners and surface estate owners while ensuring the highest degree
of concern for the preservation of the public health, safety, morals and general welfare. As
part of the resolution City staff will make their recommendations to the City Council within the 180 day timeline. The moratorium does not affect the two pending applications. For more information about those applications
and the City’s current gas and oil drilling ordinance please click here.
by JoeThomas on December 16, 2010 in News  In a unanimous decision, the City of Flower Mound decided against variance requests
that would allow drilling near Lake Grapevine. While most drilling is safe, it really did not make any logical sense
to drill so close to one of Dallas – Fort Worth’s major water supplies. You can read
the full article at Star Local News. XTO
Energy Seeking City Gas Drilling Permit
Posted Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2010 By Nicholas Sakelaris Southlake's drilling ordinance will be put to the test next month with XTO Energy's application for gas wells on
the Milner family ranch. The application calls for up to 18 gas wells on the 52-acre property on Highland Street south of
Texas 114 and east of White Chapel Boulevard. The initial application requests just two wells. The
Planning & Zoning Commission is scheduled to vote on the specific use permit for the proposed gas well at its Nov. 4 meeting.
The City Council could follow in November or December. This marks the first time that a gas well has come up for a city
vote, so the process could be tedious, some council members have warned. If the council approves the specific use permit,
the next step would be the approval of a gas well permit, which is approved by city staff. In
response to residents' concerns, XTO Energy changed the location of the drill site so it would be more than 1,000 feet from
homes on Summerplace Lane. The new application reflects the change and complies with the 1,000-foot buffer in Southlake's
drilling ordinance. The two homes on the Milner property are less than 1,000 feet from the wellhead, but the owners
have signed waivers consenting to the drilling. City leaders went over the drilling application
at a joint council and commission workshop Oct. 5. One major concern: where would XTO Energy get the millions of gallons
of water needed for hydraulic fracturing? The process, known as fracking, is where gas companies inject water, sand and other
chemicals under high-pressure into the well bore to release the gas trapped inside the shale. The city does not allow
gas companies to draw from the city's water supply. "The city of Southlake currently doesn't have the resources
to sell water to the applicant" said Ken Baker, city director of planning. XTO Energy's application includes examples
where they've tapped into fire hydrants, a violation of the city's ordinance. "The intent of our ordinance is very
specific regarding the source of our water," Councilwoman Carolyn Morris said. Baker said the city can specify
how the water is to be brought in. The alternative raises concerns, too, because the water would have to be trucked
in from outside sources. "When you're hauling all the water in, that's a lot of truck traffic," said city
planner Lorrie Fletcher. Council members were also concerned about the truck route because
it includes using White Chapel Boulevard in addition to Highland Street and Texas 114 and its frontage road. The council
can specify which roads can be taken, and XTO Energy has to put aside money to pay for potential road repairs, Baker said.
If drilling trucks stray from those roads, the energy company could face fines. The look of the
drill site also raises concerns. Mayor John Terrell said he wants to put time limits on drilling wells on a particular
site. That's because until every well is drilled on a pad site, the gas company isn't required by city ordinance to install
the final landscaping and wall surrounding the site. It's a problem Terrell said he's run into at Dallas/Fort
Worth Airport where he helped negotiate a lease deal with Chesapeake Energy. "If it doesn't get done by
then, it expires, and they've got to come back in and re-apply," said Terrell, D/FW Airport vice president of commercial
development. Baker said the city can request renderings of what the drill site would look like before the final screening
is in place. XTO Energy's application includes four variances to the city's ordinance, including
a request to build a wooden fence surrounded by cypress trees rather than a masonry wall as required by city ordinance.
XTO Energy Wants to Drill in
a Highland Street Pasture but Must Secure Homeowners' Approval
June 1, 2010 By Nicholas Sakelaris,
Staff Writer Southlake Journal Southlake's second proposed gas well site will likely test the city's drilling ordinance as XTO Energy plans to drill within 1,000 feet of more than 40 homes. Affected
homeowners on Summerplace Lane and Dove Creek Trail must sign waivers because the proposed site violates the city's drilling
ordinance. XTO Energy plans two gas wells initially on a Highland Street pasture owned by Jim
Milner just east of White Chapel Boulevard. Ultimately, the "Milner site" site could have 20 wells, according to
the site plan. All the wells will be within 600 to 700 feet of several houses. Summerplace Lane resident Joni Lehman said she and her neighbors signed waivers to allow XTO Energy to drill in the
field behind their houses. She supports the proposed well site, saying that will ensure that
the beautiful pasture behind her house doesn't develop into a neighborhood. Milner has assured her that XTO Energy will go
"above and beyond" to maintain the land. "We wanted it to be nice, so we all still
have our view," she said. Southlake residents can learn more about the proposed drill site
at a pair of public meetings 7:30 p.m. on June 21 and 28 at Town Hall. XTO Energy will make a presentation and then field
questions from the public. The Southlake Program for the Involvement of Neighborhoods (SPIN) will host the meeting. In a letter to the city, XTO Energy's Walter Dueease asks for seven variances to the city's drilling ordinance, including
the ban on drilling within 1,000 feet of protected structures like school and homes. Truck traffic would enter the drill site
using Texas 114, Highland Street and White Chapel Boulevard, according to the site plan. Southlake
has now received applications to drill at two locations in the city. The first, submitted in February, proposes to drill up
to 27 wells on Southlake's border with Grapevine on Texas 26. Some Grapevine residents expressed
concerns because that drill site is about 840 feet from Grapevine High School. Grapevine and Colleyville also require 1,000-foot
buffers between gas wells and protected uses like schools and houses. No date has been set for
either Southlake gas well application to go before the Planning and Zoning Commission or City Council. Meanwhile, Colleyville's proposed first gas well site on Pleasant Run Road near Southlake's southern border is set
to go before Colleyville's Planning and Zoning Commission on June 14. Titan Operating's proposal to drill 14 gas wells on
the Quenichet property has been tabled multiple times. The nearby Hills of Monticello homeowners association, which includes
Southlake and Colleyville homes, has filed a lawsuit against Titan because the initial drill site was too close to association
property. The drill site has since been relocated. XTO Site Brings Controversy Drilling gas wells in populated areas comes with
controversy. A proposal in Colleyville during the winter, and now a proposal in Southlake this spring, have both been complicated
by the proximity of the proposed site to neighboring houses, parks and schools in adjacent communities. In Colleyville, Titan Energy has moved its proposed pad site because it was closer than
1,000 feet to several Southlake homes across Bear Creek. The plan will still require variances. In
Southlake, which also requires a 1,000-foot buffer from homes, schools, public buildings and parks, the site proposed by XTO
Energy is 1,082 feet from the closest Southlake home, but 841 feet from the science classrooms at Grapevine High School, across
the road in Grapevine. Residents have raised concerns about toxic air emissions and contaminated
water at gas well sites, where carcinogens and neurotoxins have been identified in some air testing. Other issues include
noise, heavy truck traffic and lights. Drilling, once begun, goes 24-hours a day. Wells, which have to be drilled one at a
time, can take months to complete. In Colleyville, where 13 wells are proposed on one pad site, Titan estimates the drilling
will go one for five to seven years. In Southlake, 27 wells are proposed for a 3-acre site on
private property just south of the Southlake tank farm. The tank farm already emits as much as 90 tons of volatile organic
compounds into the air near GHS each year, including carcinogens. That 81-acre facility, owned by several oil companies, is
regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), which relies on tank farm operators to measure emissions.
TCEQ is tasked to monitor emissions nearby gas drilling sites. A
gas transmission pipeline is proposed to run from the site, crossing Brumlow and then generally following Big Bear Creek north
and west through Timarron Golf Course to Pleasant Run Road in Colleyville, near the proposed Titan site. XTO has proposed six variances to Southlake's drilling ordinance. These include building a chain link fence with
landscaping instead of a masonry wall and not installing remotely monitored gates, interior fencing with barbwire or security
cameras. The company cites "unnecessary cost" as the reason for the exceptions, though
the company does not mention the proximity of the high school. "XTO Energy expects to comply
with all portions of the current gas well ordinance but suggests that these exceptions are safe and reasonable considering
the location of this drill site adjacent to the existing fuel storage facility, State Highway 26 and DART rail line,"
Walter Dueease with XTO Energy wrote in a letter to the city. "Few improvements, if any, have been added to these industrial
uses and we believe our proposals do not conflict with the prevailing conditions." With
spring break last week, Grapevine-Colleyville school district officials have not yet had a chance to study the XTO proposal,
said GCISD spokeswoman Megan Overman. The public can ask questions and voice their opinions
at public meetings March 30, April 1 and April 5 in the City Council chambers at Town Hall, 1400 Main St., in Southlake. The
meetings start at 6:30 p.m. with an open house display of maps in the Town Hall lobby.. A formal presentation begins at 7
p.m. followed by question and answer sessions.
The proposed drilling site, near
Pleasant Run and Big Bear Creek on the Quenichet property, if approved, will be closer to seven homes than the 1,000-foot
limit specified by city ordinance. All the affected homes are in Southlake: six in Timarron and one in the Hills of Monticello.
Titan Operating, LLC, which has filed an application for the drilling permit, asked the Colleyville
Planning and Zoning Commission for "more flexibility" in air quality testing and noise abatement than the city’s
ordinance provides. The company made a presentation at the P&Z meeting Monday, which included a public hearing. Chris Hammack, Titan vice president of operations, said the company plans to drill 13 wells from the pad site. He
added that drilling operations could last as long as "five to seven years." P&Z
commissioners asked if the site noise could be reduced during nighttime hours, but Hammack said that drilling operations,
when begun, "will run 24-hours per day." Large amounts of water are required for the drilling process, and drilling
operations will be scheduled to correspond to water availability, spokesmen said. The company
has asked for permission to erect a 150-foot drilling tower, and said they will build a 28-foot wall to abate pad site noise,
which they project at about 85 decibels during drilling. Most speakers at the hearing were from
Southlake, and opposed the application for the Quenichet site. See the full story in next week’s Journal.
Three Dallas law firms that have formed the
North Texas Lease Litigation Group are contending that energy companies are trying to renege on drilling agreements
with homeowners' association alliances in North Texas' Barnett Shale. Those agreements are binding leases, the law firms
say, even if individual property owners did not sign formal lease contracts. The law firms have sued on behalf of an Arlington
couple, Willie and Carmen Booth, who claim they are due a lease bonus of nearly $5,000. Read the complete story in the Star-Telegram. Jack Z. Smith
Devon Energy Corp. CEO Larry Nichols said Wednesday the company
is reducing its natural gas drilling in the short-term until gas prices start to rebound. “We see absolutely no reason
to continue to drill at this time and bring natural gas production on at this time, any more than we need to,” Nichols
said at the company’s annual shareholders meeting. “It’s better to leave that gas in the ground and sell
it next year, or in future years, when we can generate a greater profit for our shareholders.”
Devon
has reduced its exploration and development capital budget to between $3.5 billion and $4.1 billion this year from $8.5 billion
in 2008. Nichols said that 2009 continues to be a challenging year for the industry but that the largest U.S. independent
oil and natural gas producer is well-placed to weather the economic downturn. “While last year was a great year,
this year is a tough year,” Nichols said, citing a steep decline in oil and natural gas prices during the second half
of 2008.
Oil prices have doubled since March with some signs that the worst of the recession
may be over and were hovering around $66 a barrel Wednesday afternoon on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Natural gas for
June delivery tumbled 36.2 cents to $3.758 per 1,000 cubic feet after peaking last summer at $13.69 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Nichols said that natural gas prices will take longer to recover than will oil prices because of the current oversupply of
natural gas.
-- Associated Press By AMAN BATHEJA - Fort Worth Star Telegram - May 3, 2009
Gas drilling screeched to a halt in Southlake months ago, but
it’s emerged as an issue in the mayoral race all the same. Mayor Pro Tem John Terrell is vying with former Mayor
Rick Stacy to be the city’s new leader. Stacy argues that Southlake has been run ineffectually since he stepped
down in 2003. As one example, he has repeatedly said the city missed out on a multimillion-dollar payday by not leasing its
mineral rights before the natural gas market collapsed. "It didn’t take 18 months to write the U.S. Constitution.
Why would it take 18 months to write the ordinance?" Stacy said. "To miss that window of opportunity for the taxpayers,
that cost us probably $12 [million] or $13 million." The city spent well over a year holding public meetings
on drilling before finally adopting a revised drilling ordinance last May. Before that, Southlake allowed drilling only in
industrial areas. By last fall, the decline in natural gas prices had prompted most drilling companies to stop signing new
leases. Worth Star TelegramOn his campaign website, Terrell describes himself as "a prime architect" of the new ordinance. He said the
city needed to make sure that residents had time to have their say. The city needed to have the revisions in place before
leasing its minerals rights to ensure that a drilling company followed the stricter rules. The city will lease its mineral
rights when natural gas prices rebound, he said. "There’s always a way to spin any story," Terrell
said. "To me, our safety and our property values were far more important than the city retaining and extracting our minerals
early." City Attorney Allen Taylor echoed Terrell’s argument. He noted that a drilling company that signed
a contract before the new ordinance was approved would not have had to honor the revised ordinance’s required 1,000-foot
setback for wells. In October, the city issued a request for proposals to lease the mineral rights on its property,
520 acres on 46 sites scattered around the city. The request specified that a proposal must include a bonus of at least $20,000
per acre and a royalty of 25 percent or more of all revenue from oil and gas produced from the land. The city received
no responses, city spokeswoman Pilar Schank said. City staff spent time working with the council to create the request and
issued it once "it met expectations," she said. Karen Whitaker helped organize the White Chapel Corridor
group in Southlake, whose members received signing bonuses of over $20,000 an acre for its mineral rights last summer. She
questions why the city didn’t sell its mineral rights last summer as well, soon after the new ordinance was approved. "We hit it at the perfect time, and I think at that point, if you were hitting your ear to the ground, you would
have known the time was right," Whitaker said. Whitaker said the bonus money would have been put to good use and
agrees with Stacy that the city dragged its feet. "We need a rec center for our teens. There’s infrastructure that
needs to be completed to handle our growth," Whitaker said. "We don’t have that, and that was free money." Southlake resident Tommy Pennington said he is comfortable with how the city handled the drilling issue. "I’d
love to see the city get the money, but at the same time I think we have to have our plan be solid instead of asking for forgiveness
later when the damage is done," Pennington said. Gene Powell, publisher of the Barnett Shale Newsletter, said
the intense competition by drilling companies to sign up property owners is probably gone for good. I don’t think
we’ll ever see bonus money anywhere near the range it was," Powell said. Despite the worry about missed opportunities,
Powell said, the focus on bonus payments was shortsighted. "The publicity has really been over the bonus money, which
is wrong," Powell said. "The real money is in the royalties." Whenever drilling companies did start signing
up people again, Powell said, he expected royalty offers would be around the same levels they were last year. |
