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Heber Springs has been immune to heavy gas rig traffic, until now. The Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission issued a drilling permit to Chesapeake Energy December 10 for a well that will be located literally a stone’s throw from the Heber Springs city limits. The Sandage Trust 10-10 1-21H28 well will be located on Hwy 110 West, across the street from the old Anderson Dry Dock location, just west of the little dike.
An increase in traffic will be seen soon in downtown Heber Springs. There are only a few routes to the site; Seventh Street to Main, Bittle Road, Hwy 107 North by the big dike, and Main Street. “Main Street provided the most direct and safest route,” said Mark Raines, senior manager of communications for Chesapeake.
Clearing of the site is underway with initial drilling planned for mid-January. “A spudder rig will operate for two to four days. During that time, about 10 trucks per day will be servicing the location. The big rig is tentatively scheduled to arrive in mid-April and will be on site for 14 to 20 days with another 10 trucks per day servicing the location. If everything goes according to schedule, the well could be in production by early to mid-May.”
Fracking (fracturing rocks to extract gas) will happen with this site, changing the number of trucks on the road from 10 per day to 50 for the four-day process. “This is mostly a daylight operation though there are exceptions depending on circumstances. A firm date for fracking has not been scheduled as yet, though it is likely to occur in late April.”
Raines said fracking should not be disruptive to local residents and businesses. “In my experience, it doesn’t seem as loud as the drilling portion of the process.”
Disposal water from the fracking will be hauled to an existing deep injection Class Two non-hazardous well in Faulkner County.
Although there are no homes right next to the site, there are homes in the vicinity. “The noise generated from a drilling site is not unlike what one would hear from a normal construction site, except our drilling operations are seven-days a week and 24-hours a day. But relatively speaking we are in and out of location much quicker.”
Locally, construction sites do not operate 24/7, what should residents expect at night from noise, lighting, traffic, etc.? “The only difference will be in the lighting. I have not been to the site, but our drilling practices are designed to have minimum impact on residents who live nearby.
“Once drilling is completed and the operating equipment is in place, Chesapeake’s well sites are made to appear as aesthetically appealing as possible. Subsequently, the sites are frequently more attractive than other utilitarian structures such as waste water pump houses or electrical substations.”
With the increase in the number of trucks traveling through town, road damage is expected to occur. “The rig is going to be in the county, and even though trucks will be traveling through town, they will be traveling on state highways,” said Jackie McPherson, Heber Springs mayor. “Chesapeake has a good track record for paying for damaged roads. We will watch to see if they get onto city streets.”
Raines reported Chesapeake would be responsible for any road damage.
The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department reported there is a severance tax in place to tax gas drilling and there are fees that have to be paid if weight limits are exceeded for weight-restricted roads. “The tax has brought in about $30 million for the Fayetteville Shale area, half of what was expected when the legislature past the tax,” said Randy Ort, public information coordinator for the AHTD.
“We compared state highway conditions in 2010 to 2007, when drilling ramped up. We’ve come up with about $450 million damage due to the increased truck traffic. With the tax money, it was new revenue for the AHTD, but no one expected the damage to be what it is. Fees and taxes do not come close to damage estimates. In ’07 there were fewer than 200 wells in the Fayetteville Shale, there are over 3,000 now.
“We’ve worked with drilling companies on maintenance assessment fees. On weight restricted roads, when the weight was going to be exceeded, the fee collected used to be $16,500 per well and it is now $41,600 per well.”
A map on the AHTD website shows the area where the trucks will be traveling in Heber have weight limits of 73,200 lbs gross weight, 18,000 lbs single (9T), and 32,000 lbs tandem axle (16T).
The cost mentioned for overweight limits is per well, not per truck.
Ort said the perception is that heavy trucks are causing the damage, when in reality it’s the increased traffic that is causing the overall problems. “There are 1,500 to 2,000 truck loads per well site.”
Heber Springs has a noise ordinance and an ordinance pertaining to gas wells in the city limits and noise levels. McPherson said, “Since this is in the county, we can’t regulate anything. I doubt anyone inside the city limits would be affected by this well.
“This is a growing pain and one that has kept us from seeing the economic crisis the rest of the country has seen. Chesapeake has been excellent stewards and will eliminate as many traffic issues as they can.
“If problems do arise from this, or any other well, I want to hear from citizens. No matter how large or small, they need to call our office at 501-362-3635.”
Heber Springs has been immune to heavy gas rig traffic, until now. The Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission issued a drilling permit to Chesapeake Energy December 10 for a well that will be located literally a stone’s throw from the Heber Springs city limits. The Sandage Trust 10-10 1-21H28 well will be located on Hwy 110 West, across the street from the old Anderson Dry Dock location, just west of the little dike.
An increase in traffic will be seen soon in downtown Heber Springs. There are only a few routes to the site; Seventh Street to Main, Bittle Road, Hwy 107 North by the big dike, and Main Street. “Main Street provided the most direct and safest route,” said Mark Raines, senior manager of communications for Chesapeake.
Clearing of the site is underway with initial drilling planned for mid-January. “A spudder rig will operate for two to four days. During that time, about 10 trucks per day will be servicing the location. The big rig is tentatively scheduled to arrive in mid-April and will be on site for 14 to 20 days with another 10 trucks per day servicing the location. If everything goes according to schedule, the well could be in production by early to mid-May.”
Fracking (fracturing rocks to extract gas) will happen with this site, changing the number of trucks on the road from 10 per day to 50 for the four-day process. “This is mostly a daylight operation though there are exceptions depending on circumstances. A firm date for fracking has not been scheduled as yet, though it is likely to occur in late April.”
Raines said fracking should not be disruptive to local residents and businesses. “In my experience, it doesn’t seem as loud as the drilling portion of the process.”
Disposal water from the fracking will be hauled to an existing deep injection Class Two non-hazardous well in Faulkner County.
Although there are no homes right next to the site, there are homes in the vicinity. “The noise generated from a drilling site is not unlike what one would hear from a normal construction site, except our drilling operations are seven-days a week and 24-hours a day. But relatively speaking we are in and out of location much quicker.”
Locally, construction sites do not operate 24/7, what should residents expect at night from noise, lighting, traffic, etc.? “The only difference will be in the lighting. I have not been to the site, but our drilling practices are designed to have minimum impact on residents who live nearby.
“Once drilling is completed and the operating equipment is in place, Chesapeake’s well sites are made to appear as aesthetically appealing as possible. Subsequently, the sites are frequently more attractive than other utilitarian structures such as waste water pump houses or electrical substations.”
With the increase in the number of trucks traveling through town, road damage is expected to occur. “The rig is going to be in the county, and even though trucks will be traveling through town, they will be traveling on state highways,” said Jackie McPherson, Heber Springs mayor. “Chesapeake has a good track record for paying for damaged roads. We will watch to see if they get onto city streets.”
Raines reported Chesapeake would be responsible for any road damage.
The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department reported there is a severance tax in place to tax gas drilling and there are fees that have to be paid if weight limits are exceeded for weight-restricted roads. “The tax has brought in about $30 million for the Fayetteville Shale area, half of what was expected when the legislature past the tax,” said Randy Ort, public information coordinator for the AHTD.
“We compared state highway conditions in 2010 to 2007, when drilling ramped up. We’ve come up with about $450 million damage due to the increased truck traffic. With the tax money, it was new revenue for the AHTD, but no one expected the damage to be what it is. Fees and taxes do not come close to damage estimates. In ’07 there were fewer than 200 wells in the Fayetteville Shale, there are over 3,000 now.
“We’ve worked with drilling companies on maintenance assessment fees. On weight restricted roads, when the weight was going to be exceeded, the fee collected used to be $16,500 per well and it is now $41,600 per well.”
A map on the AHTD website shows the area where the trucks will be traveling in Heber have weight limits of 73,200 lbs gross weight, 18,000 lbs single (9T), and 32,000 lbs tandem axle (16T).
The cost mentioned for overweight limits is per well, not per truck.
Ort said the perception is that heavy trucks are causing the damage, when in reality it’s the increased traffic that is causing the overall problems. “There are 1,500 to 2,000 truck loads per well site.”
Heber Springs has a noise ordinance and an ordinance pertaining to gas wells in the city limits and noise levels. McPherson said, “Since this is in the county, we can’t regulate anything. I doubt anyone inside the city limits would be affected by this well.
“This is a growing pain and one that has kept us from seeing the economic crisis the rest of the country has seen. Chesapeake has been excellent stewards and will eliminate as many traffic issues as they can.
“If problems do arise from this, or any other well, I want to hear from citizens. No matter how large or small, they need to call our office at 501-362-3635.”
