Is now a good time to link Billy Bob’s speech from Landman? Or should we wait.
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I mean if I wanted to watch an old man stroke his pipe…line there are better ways to do it
I was talking with a hydrogeologist on a plane last week. Every time they plug a leaking well, it just helps the pressure build up on the other failing plugs. So for every well they plug, you can guarantee there’s another one that will fail soon enough. Too much produced water being reinjected apparently.
I’m not an oil and gas guy, but as I understand it, much of the produced water is reinjected to help force more oil out of the formations.
However, is it possible for these data centers to use produced water for their high cooling water demands?
That’s sometimes true, but most of the industry’s reinjection today is simply water disposal. Many wells produce multiple barrels of water for every barrel of oil, and the water has to go somewhere.
The pressure from injecting into disposal wells is a factor, but the main problem with of these old leaking wells is that they weren’t properly plugged to begin with. They would all have leaked at some point even if there was no disposal going on.
Nobody wants to spend money on P&A work, and there hasn’t been much accountability for doing shoddy work.
The other misconception people have is that these wells are all connected to each other and to disposal wells. That can be true on a localized basis for a few wells, but it’s not really the case that most are leaking because of pressure build-ups from connected wells.
This problem is 100 years in the making.
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Can you imagine how nice it would be if for oil and gas there was only one small place negatively affected like this windmill blade dumping ground?
They can clean it up in 6 months. Classic Mountain vs Mole Hill.
PS Here’s the mountain:
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Point out a problem, and a solution pops up.
Science news: Earlier this year, 1,124 wind-turbine blades were sitting in a Wyoming landfill. Now, a Missouri cement plant has given 7,000 more a second life, offering a different ending for retired renewable-energy equipment - The Economic Times Science news: Earlier this year, 1,124 wind-turbine blades were sitting in a Wyoming landfill. Now, a Missouri cement plant has given 7,000 more a second life, offering a different ending for retired renewable-energy equipment - The Economic Times
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Unfortunately, with Zombie Wells while there might be a solution, there is a lack of implementation or enforcement.
And now there’s a solution for the molehill!
God help us with the mountain that is oil/gas/coal environmental damage.
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In Sweden wind turbine blades used as art deco parking garage.
Yesterday I drove past one of the Sweetwater sites the politicians were all strutting around and bragging about getting cleaned up. Not a single thing has been done.
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From Google AI - The injunction was issued in early July so it looks like they don’t have to start until basically January:
A Texas state judge issued a temporary injunction ordering Global Fiberglass Solutions to halt new shipments and begin cleaning up over 3,000 abandoned wind turbine blades accumulated at two unpermitted Sweetwater, Texas sites. The Texas Attorney General and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality are overseeing the enforcement. [1, 2, 3]
Cleanup Mandates and Timeline
The court order mandates strict removal benchmarks overseen by state authorities:
- Immediate Action: Stop accepting or processing any new wind turbine blades or solid waste.
- 180 Days: Begin the physical removal process of the discarded material.
- 270 Days: Clear at least 25% of the stockpiled waste.
- 365 Days: Clear 50% of the waste.
- 460 Days: Clear 75% of the waste.
- 530–550 Days: Complete full removal and clear all remaining material from both facilities. [3, 5, 6]
Background and Environmental Status
- The Violation: Global Fiberglass Solutions was contracted to recycle retired turbine blades but instead stockpiled over 4,000 blades across the Sweetwater properties starting years prior, turning them into unauthorized industrial solid waste disposal sites.
- Next Legal Steps: While the temporary injunction forces immediate cleanup actions, the overarching state lawsuit seeking civil penalties is scheduled for trial on September 13, 2027. [3]
If you would like more information, let me know if you are looking for:Updates on the court timeline and trial milestonesDetails on TCEQ waste classification policies
AI responses may include mistakes.
[1] https://www.youtube.com/shorts/NRopBYLiDu8
[3] https://texasscorecard.com/state/judge-orders-cleanup-of-west-texas-wind-turbine-blade-dump/
[5] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-ZIx4N-54o
[6] https://www.fox4news.com/news/texas-wind-turbine-waste-cleanup-sweetwater
[7] https://ktxs.com/news/local/judge-orders-sweetwater-wind-turbine-blade-cleanup-halts-new-shipments
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It’s odd that they got an indictment in February but didn’t pursue actual clean-up activities until seeking an injunction in July.
Priorities?
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University of Houston working to solve the molehill problem too.
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Just like the COOGS to come up with something useful, practical, and beneficial to the environment and the world around us. Good to see us on the forefront of what to do with these blades.
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And another promising solution that looks intriguing.
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Just throwing this out there. Here in NW Iowa it’s windier than hell so Midwest Energy decided to put up windmills. All over the place. You’d think for green energy, right? Well, owner Warren Buffett told investors it’s because of tax breaks. The same Warren Buffett who owns BNSF railroad. The same railroad that hauls crude oil from the fracking fields of North Dakota and the tar sands of Canada to refineries. And yes the same railroad that had said crude oil derail and spill oil into the Rock River. Another kicker, none of the energy produced by the windmills goes local, it goes to Illinois.
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Sounds like its both for the tax breaks and the energy, since they have a willing buyer.