A pair of bills and an appropriations rider pending in the Texas Legislature could bring more vigorous inspections to natural gas production facilities in urban parts of the Barnett Shale area.
Rep. Tan Parker, R-Flower Mound, introduced two bills Friday that make state inspections a priority in urban counties and assess doubles fines when violations are found in those counties. BY THE NUMBERS
Here's a breakdown, by county, of the 21,593 natural gas-related inspections conducted by the Texas Railroad Commission between January 2007 and July 2010.
Archer
6
Somervell
16
Dallas
16
Ellis
20
Bosque
28
Cooke
29
Coryell
60
Montague
78
Hill
120
Shackelford
293
Clay
293
Stephens
533
Erath
641
Hood
704
Parker
831
Johnson
1,005
Comanche
1,169
Palo Pinto
1,949
Eastland
2,010
Denton
2,136
Tarrant
2,658
Jack
2,923
Wise
4,075
SOURCE: Texas Railroad Commission
House Bill 2125 specifies that the Texas Railroad Commission give priority to areas populated both with people and gas wells when conducting inspections.
"There's no higher priority than the health and safety of our people," Parker said.
Language in the bill specifies that inspectors give priority to counties with more than 2,000 gas wells and a population of 650,000 or more. The bill, as written, would affect Denton and Tarrant counties but not Wise and Johnson counties, the other core counties in the Barnett Shale region.
There are about 14,000 active gas wells in 23 counties covering the Barnett Shale. The Railroad Commission has permitted another 3,300 wells, including permits to drill in Hamilton County.
Between January 2007 and July 2010, about 22 percent of all Barnett Shale inspections by the commission occurred in Denton and Tarrant counties, according to information obtained through an open records request.
Wise County had the most inspections, accounting for about 19 percent of the inspections during that time period. Johnson County had about 5 percent of the inspections, or about half the inspection activity of Denton and Tarrant counties.
A second bill, HB 2126, calls those counties "urban natural gas producing counties" and doubles the fines for safety and pollution-control violations - from the current maximum of $10,000 per day to $20,000 per day.
"If there are bad apples out there, we need to send them a clear message," Parker said.
Parker also has requested an appropriations rider for five additional Railroad Commission inspectors for Barnett Shale operations.
While the cost of the additional full-time employees comes to $800,000 for the next two-year period, Parker said he believed the appropriation could work within the confines of the current budget.
"The bottom line is that the Railroad Commission has been in urban areas far too infrequently," Parker said.
The most recent review of the commission by the Sunset Advisory Committee cited the agency for lax enforcement, noting that the same criticism was lodged the last time the agency came under review.
During the last legislative session, Parker organized a working group of fellow House members that continues to meet on issues dealing with shale gas drilling and production. They discuss topics ranging from air quality monitoring to pipeline routing and eminent domain.
"It's an opportunity for us to show our strength," Parker said.
Now in his third term, Parker has filed 21 bills for the current session. HB 2125 and HB 2126 are the only two of those related to natural gas production. He also co-authored HB 1145, which would shore up funding for regional air quality monitoring.
Parker has not signed up to carry any bills on drilling issues from the Senate. He said he still has time to find someone in the Senate to carry companion bills for HB 2125 and HB 2126.
Legislators have until 6 p.m. Friday to file bills for the current session.
PEGGY HEINKEL-WOLFE can be reached at 940-566-6881. Her e-mail address is pheinkel-wolfe@dentonrc.com .
