City Council Approves Hiring of Attorneys to Oppose Proposed Saltwater Disposal Well
By Susan Schrock
Posted on March 08, 2017, March 08, 2017

Water-Lake

The Arlington City Council voted unanimously Tuesday, March 7 to hire outside attorneys and an industry expert to oppose a proposed saltwater disposal well on the Fort Worth side of Lake Arlington.

The City of Arlington and the City of Fort Worth have both filed letters with the Texas Railroad Commission protesting BlueStone Natural Resources' application to create the proposed well. The City of Arlington has retained the Law Office of Jackson, Sjoberg, McCarthy & Townsend, LLP, of Austin, and the engineering firm of Pollard Petroleum Consultants of Austin.

The BlueStone Natural Resources' proposed well would be used for the underground disposal of produced saltwater and other oil and gas well-related waste water, according to the permit application, which was filed in December with the state.

Both the City of Arlington and the City of Fort Worth have ordinances prohibiting saltwater disposal wells within their city limits.

Click here to read the City Of Arlington's letter of protest to the Texas Railroad Commission.

Lake Arlington provides drinking water to Arlington, as well as to several northeast Tarrant County communities that are served by the Trinity River Authority. Lake Arlington also is a key part of the Tarrant Regional Water District's distribution system, which brings source water to Arlington, Fort Worth, Mansfield and other smaller communities.

BlueStone Natural Resources stated that its waste water would be injected into the porous Ellenburger Formation at depth intervals between 7,850 feet to 11,500 feet, according to its application.

The City of Arlington's letter to the state raised concerns about the proposed disposal well site's proximity to the Lake Arlington Dam. The lake holds about 13 billion gallons of water.

The Trinity River Authority has filed a letter with the state in support of the City of Arlington's protest letter.The Texas Railroad Commission has scheduled a public hearing in Austin for May 24 and May 25.

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