Montana board says CBM water doesn't need re-injection
By SUSAN GALLAGHER
Associated Press writer
Friday, March 24, 2006 2:06 AM MST
HELENA, Mont. -- Water drawn from aquifers as part of coal-bed methane production does not have to be injected back into the ground, a state board decided Thursday, rejecting a push by some ranchers in eastern Montana.
Proposals to place new requirements on the young coal-bed methane industry, which extracts natural gas from coal seams, dominated a meeting of the Montana Board of Environmental Review.
Besides defeating the proposal to require water injection, the board adopted requirements intended to limit the release of salty water into rivers and streams.
The Northern Plains Resource Council and other groups had petitioned the board to place new rules on the industry operating in southwestern Montana's Powder River Basin. Opponents maintained that stepped-up regulation could harm the future of the industry, which began Montana operations in the late 1990s. If the industry suffers, they said, so could Montana landowners paid for having wells on their property.
"If the current rules are working, then the question is, why do we need to make changes?" said Bruce Williams of Fidelity Exploration and Production Co.
Northern Plains, a coalition of ranchers and others active on natural-resources issues, said water should be injected into the ground to protect landowners who need it for their livestock and homes, but run the risk of wells and springs being dried up by coal-bed methane extraction. The water brought forth in that process can be salty. Some ranchers say once the water is on the surface, it is a nuisance because it is too salty for irrigation and threatens to ruin the soil.
Northern Plains representatives said the organization might ask the 2007 Legislature to require injection.
"Irrigated farming is our livelihood, and we're not going to roll over to the industry," Ray Muggli, chairman of Northern Plains' coal-bed methane committee, said in an interview. He raises grain and alfalfa south of Miles City.
Board of Environmental Review Chairman Joe Russell said requiring injection might exceed the board's authority. Another board member, Bill Rossbach, said it is not clear that injection is practical from a technical standpoint.
Acting on another proposed rule, the board repealed an exemption to Montana's policy on non-degradation of water. The action is intended to narrow the coal-bed methane industry's opportunity to release salty water into rivers and streams.
David Searle of Marathon Oil Co. said water-quality data do not indicate the board's action was warranted.
The board postponed until September action on a proposal that water discharged by the industry be treated first. Board members said they want more information about the practicality of treatment.
The board's action on rules Thursday followed an earlier period of public comment that included several hearings. It was last July when the board agreed to consider imposing new requirements. |
