Other views: N.D. must be vigilant about spills

North Dakota should take heed of a few recent warnings of the potentially dire consequences of oil development. Earlier this month, when a pipeline failed near Keene, in McKenzie County, 4,200 gallons of potentially toxic saltwater and 5 gallons of oil ran into Lake Sakakawea.

It was the first known time that oil or waste from oil production entered the Missouri River reservoir, a critical waterway and the drinking supply for cities, including Williston and Bismarck.

The rupture in the 3-inch pipeline happened after a hillside slumped — a landslide that came after the spring thaw unleashed meltwater from an unusually snowy winter. A conservation officer for the state Game and Fish Department doesn’t believe the spill would harm marine life, since the saltwater was diluted. But the spill could trigger enforcement action under the federal Clean Water Act against the owner of the well and pipeline.

Considering the proliferation of wells around Lake Sakakawea, it’s fortunate North Dakota hasn’t suffered a major contamination of a water source. Actually, it already has — the 2004 Charbonneau Creek spill, also in McKenzie County, when almost 1 million gallons of saltwater ran into a tributary of the Yellowstone River, killing fish and vegetation, with cleanup efforts lasting years.

Because horizontal drilling enables well pads to be placed far from shorelines or other environmentally fragile locations, regulators should not allow their placement in vulnerable areas. Unfortunately, that already has happened.

An industry committee has identified almost 100 wells and a handful of pipelines close to the lake or its tributaries. Almost 50 wells are located on federal lands near the lake. Oil companies are assembling boats and equipment for quick responses to spills like the one near Keene.

Elsewhere, runoff from heavy snowmelt has swamped containment dikes built around oil wells to prevent petroleum waste from escaping. As a result, in more than 30 places, waste ponds averaging the size of a large swimming pool spilled over their containment dikes.

The spills happened in spite of written warnings by state regulators to oil companies before the spring thaw. Thirteen oil companies owned 32 sites where spills occurred. One company, Hess Corp., accounted for 17 spills.

North Dakota must send a strong signal that this is not acceptable. Where it can be shown that operators violated regulations, they should be given the maximum $12,500 fine. North Dakota must make it clear that, although it welcomes development of its oil and gas resources, the state is not going to sit by and watch its environment — especially its precious water — fouled.

Tags: other views, opinion, editorials, oil, spill