Mineral Lease

[kenimpzoom]

Re: Mineral Lease

Frac fluids are usually comprised of some type of "gum", such as xanthan or guar gum. They use both in foods.

The usally add a crosslinker like magnesium oxide, perfectly harmless, it will give you a rash if you leave it on.

Then sometimes a breaker is added, some time of oxizider or acid. Usally a very low dose. Again, dont leave it on you, it can cause a rash.

These chemicals are now worse than what you would find under your kitchen sink or in your swimming pool.

The biggest problem with the rigs is the noise, and all the trucks.

Chesapeak is a pretty big company so they should be fairly responsible.

Ken

 

[kenimpzoom]

Re: Mineral Lease

If this is the Barnett shale gas, they may want to use diesel to drill with. If they do, make sure they haul away all the drill cuttings and dont dump them on the ground.

But I think most operators use water based mud to drill with, again they are harmless.

Ken

 

[mscher]

Re: Mineral Lease

Dude I deal with frac fluids every day and they are no more toxic than ketchup. Hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide are NOTHING!!! Dont get it on you and it will harm nothing.

This is the same lingo the enviromentowhacos use to scare peole into thinking drilling is bad for the enviroment.

If you really what to know about a more toxic chemical, google dihydrogen monoxide.

P.S. The one thing that oil companies still use is diesel for their fluids. Just stipulate that no diesel will be used for the fluids, there are many alternatives, and with the price of diesel this high, the alternative are darn near as cheap. The biggest impact of diesel is that it will stink.

Ken, oil well drilling fluids engineer

I've spilled ketchup on my skin before and not had any problems.

If these people are drilling in, what is basically their back yards, what happens when these "no problem" chemicals get into the aquifer, for their drinking water wells?

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: Mineral Lease

But I think most operators use water based mud to drill with, again they are harmless.

Ken

Drilling mud and frac fluids are not the same thing. One is used to control pressures while drilling, and one is pumped into the formation under pressure to rupture it. Water based mud is indeed used, but in deeper wells it doesn't have enough weight to control the well, so substances such as oil & barium are added to the mud to make it heavier. The OP should know that there can be problems with substances in drilling mud also.

As before, I am not saying that drilling and fracking can not be done safely. Given the proper procedures and materials, I think it can be done the right way. The key is in being informed and requiring controls on the drilling and operating companies. Its also in not taking what those folks tell you at face value. Some are very honest folks and some will lie like rugs to do what they want to do - you just have to figure out which are which.

 

[SnappingTurtle]

Re: Mineral Lease

I have family & friends on all sides of this discussion, and one thing they all agree on, is to get a expert to represent your short, AND long term interest. Get this expert help up front, after the fact is too late.

Yes, I have family that does this also, and has been doing it for three generations, and can honestly say not all “land owner representatives” are created equal. Be careful.

That initial pay check can sound really good, but it could be a drop in the bucket compared to the loss of value in the land itself over the long term, not to mention the invasion of your property if you actually live on the land being used.

Scarred earth with capped, non producing wells doesn't sell very well.

On the other hand I have a good friend who retired at 25 on his oil royalties, and has spent the better part of his life sailing & doodling around with boats, and stuff. He lives in another world, where work as we know it, is just something he reads about when he gets bored, or runs out of projects.

 

[kenimpzoom]

Re: Mineral Lease

I've spilled ketchup on my skin before and not had any problems.

If these people are drilling in, what is basically their back yards, what happens when these "no problem" chemicals get into the aquifer, for their drinking water wells?

I could say a whole lot, but then this post would be locked up cause it would get too political. Lets just say, people get scared of oil wells cause they just dont understand them. There is very little to fear. Refineries are where all the bad chemicals come from, drilling the wells uses very earth friendly chemicals. I know, I have been doing this for the last 15 years.


How deep is your aquifer, and how deep are they going to drill the oil well?

Your aquifer is usally only a few hundred feet deep. They will drill down through that with water and ketchup type polymers. Then they run pipe and seal it off with cement.

Your biggest concern is the noise and the trucks.

Ken

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: Mineral Lease

On the other hand I have a good friend who retired at 25 on his oil royalties, and has spent the better part of his life sailing & doodling around with boats, and stuff.

I used to know a guy like that too. He had a bunch of wells on his cattle ranch here in Loooooziana. Two of the wells were gas wells that were making him about 20 grand a month each, when I knew him! Funny guy, though - about the only sign of wealth that I ever saw was his Dodge 3500 with a custom aluminum bed, with wheel well flares that flowed into full length side steps, front flares and a grill guard/cattle pusher. I think the whole rig cost him about $45,000 and he paid cash for it! Must be nice!

Oil wells are not an inherently bad thing but, as a couple of folks have pointed out, there are a lot of scammers in the business. I get mad as can be because of all the junk that shady operating companies have left behind in my area. Sometimes this happens because the company was being run by a bunch of crooks, and sometimes it is because they were lousy businessmen and went broke. At the same time, however, there are companies like Shell, who I see out maintaining its gas line right of ways properly and checking its pipelines for problems. They act responsibly so most folks don't have a problem with them.

BTW, I read something yesterday about a frac fluid developed by Baker Tools. Its called B9, Emerald FRAQ Fluid, and it is supposed to be very environmentally friendly.

 

[bhammer]

Re: Mineral Lease

All,

Thank you so much for the facts, thoughts and ideas. It truly has been a big help thus far. As an HOA, we are going to hire an outside source to help us all through this. The first part is to get an HOA vote to allow funds for this. From there, we as a family will decide if we need to represent ourselves. The HOA truly is about us and not anyone Else's interest.

I have done much research on both sides of the issue.That is one thing I remember about college, critical thinking. Everyone should be concerned about whats being pumped into the ground and what will stay there. For anyone that has flow over or is from around here, there are not many acres that do not have a well of some sort on it and many of them have been done using drilling muds and frac fluids. One of our clients for the company I work for, is in the business of exploration. I have made contact with them and they have agreed to sit down and discuss with me under the "good ole boy" network.

Yes, let's not make this a political thread as I'll ask it to be closed if that is the case. There are too many of those already floating around here and no one ever wins and no minds changed.