Give the Local Boy a Title/Pay Him to Lie

As with government, media and court systems local workers and residents are also caught up in the oil & gas game. As the old saying goes "money changes everything" including peoples values on right & wrong. I personally know several locals, born and raised in the area that now have "positions" with out of state  oil & gas companies that are a prime example of this. The locals have worked in the industry for years through the good and bad, at times have not had a "pot to piss in" and are now swimming in cash thanks to oil & gas. Everyone needs a job, and has to feed their family, but at the expense of peoples lives? The local boy has stomped jugs, shoveled mud and done all the crap work for years and along comes a company that will offer big bucks and little work in exchange for their local ties to the community. Oil & gas companies know who these persons are and can pick them out in a line-up. Qualifications for the job are the last thing necessary, wave a little "green" under their nose and they become puppets to the industry.  The locals are used to gain trust in the community, open doors to access land and water, and worth every penny they are paid in the oil & gas game.  The title they have been given gives them a feeling of worth and position among their friends and fellow workers and they do not realize they have been "bought" just a pawn, someone to do the dirty work and save face for the company. Their job requires them to lie on reports, lie to landowners, lie to workers and in return they can buy a new pickup they couldn't before.  He has sold his soul, lost the trust of local residents and landowners and people he has known for years, but most important now has a bank account with money in it, something he has never had before. This type of person has little education, and obviously little to no conscience and base life and self worth on money, oil & gas companies "ideal" employee.  When the "boom is bust" they are dropped like a dime, without a second thought, but the community will remember what they have done to their land and lives and are very unforgiving for the lies they have told.

Safety Alert : Workers in Bakken Oilfield

With the recent explosion of a drilling rig near Beach, and numerous other explosions and fires in the past year, toxic and explosive gases have become an obvious threat. The dirty little "secret" of the ND Health Dept, ND  Oil & Gas and the oil companies is becoming very dangerous. I have never been to orientation for employment for any oilfield positions, but I can imagine if you were made aware of the gases you are exposed to on a daily basis, you would probably go back to your home state and work at Taco Johns. The lies of the leaders of the state of North Dakota are becoming more obvious by the days, pay offs and greed of the Oil companies involved are common knowledge. We are all casualty numbers figured on their profit charts. OSHA of course is there to protect you, but you first must know what is going on for them to help. If you take 5 minutes and read the following information if will make a life saving situation out of a corrupt lie. When strange health issues start from exposure, doctors have no starting point unless they know what the exposure is. Symptoms can be treated, with little success if exposure continues. Residents living in areas of oil & gas activity are exposed 24/7 with extreme health issues as a result, but without proper testing do not know what they are exposed to. The ND Health Dept refuses and have not given proper information to residents and workers alike, thus subjecting you to a very life threatening  situation.  Testing in the Bakken area have resulted in very horrifying results to what we are exposed to. Toxic, hazardous and carcinogenic gases such as Benzene, Xylene, Toluene, Chloroform, Methane, Propane and Butane to name just a few. There are of course the chemicals also released into the atmosphere from the drilling and fracking process. Knowing this information it comes to no surprise that a drilling rig would explode and threaten the lives of the workers. These gases are common for the Bakken and released in very high levels. The problem with the situation lies in the hands of the ND Health Dept, first they will not acknowledge that the gases exist for obvious reasons, danger and life threatening, if workers were told this, who would they get to come to ND and work? Second, the ND Health Dept is knowingly putting the residents lives in danger. Knowledge is the most powerful tool here, remember this information for future use when you end up in an emergency situation, it could save your life. Do your own research on the effects of these gases, contact OSHA, internet searches will also give you additional information. All these gases are explosive and over exposure can kill in moments, daily exposure will cause permanent damage to nervous system, immunity, blood, liver, and most important lungs and cancer.

Oil & Gas Code of Ethics

We lie, cheat, steal and trespass on private property. How dare you accuse us of attempted murder in a court of law, we have paid of the courts, government and law to allow us to do this. We own this world, we can destroy it and everything in it if we so desire.
You have forgotten, we won't need your oil & gas when you have killed us all off.

North Dakota Corruption

I have found through dealings with various ND State departments that there is a reason you will find North Dakota on the list of being the most corrupt state in the United States.  Hoeven and Company have set up the state of North Dakota to line their pockets and totally destroy our natural resources and the health of the residents without a second thought.  The ND State Health Department and The ND Oil and Gas work hand in hand to exploit the process.  The ND Oil and Gas allows industry to continue with very little supervision and the ND Health Department REFUSES to monitor air quality and adjusts water reports to meet their needs.  How many years has this been happening?   I have found that I am not the only landowner in the state of ND with contaminated water and health and livestock issues, this is unfortunate but will finally bring this info to public attention.  The time has come that the residents of North Dakota know the effect and serious damage corruption within state government will do.  There has for some time been a high asthma and cancer rate in the state of ND, which seems odd considering the fact that a rural lifestyle should be much healthier. Facts are that our own ND state have allowed industry to destroy our air and water with deadly toxins that are causing this.  Pay offs from companies in the right pocket will create laws that allow extreme contamination that put health at risk.  Some time back we all heard of the ND Game and Fish report that was strangely  hidden when John Hoeven was Governor, and the negative effects the Oil Industry would have on our wildlife.  This is a very good example of how unimportant health and welfare are in our ND State Departments. I would imagine the report about the effects on human life are still on someone's desk somewhere yet to surface. In the state of ND you are warned not to eat the fish caught in our lakes and rivers because of high mercury levels and high levels of hexavalent chromium has been found in groundwater from coal contamination. What reports will be next, with the use of things like urea, formaldehyde, diesel and other carcinogenic chemicals in fracking.  One thing is for sure, you can bet the the ND State Health Department is NOT looking out for your health and welfare and doing proper testing to protect us. You can begin your own research by requesting public reports, good luck with this, it seems to be a problem with the ND State Health Department to release public information. The United States does have a Freedom of Information Act to give the public access to these reports, I guess ND has not gotten that memo yet.

Cancer and the Oil Field

After reviewing a comment left on one of my postings, the subject of cancer has been brought up.  Few people think about this side of the "get rich quick" oil field employment.  The sad reality of it all is that oil field exposure comes with many health problems both to the workers and the innocent people who choose not to have any association with the industry.  Living in the center of the industrial mess, I see many health hazards from buckets and barrels of toxic chemicals laying along side the road unattended to extreme high readings of toxic gases and chemicals released into the air that we breath.  All of this comes with a price to pay, the workers seem to think the money is worth the risk, the people, livestock and wildlife that are forced into exposure with no choice are just "unfortunate".  I have noticed that none of the 350+ trucks that run up and down the roads daily have no children in them, of course not, this exposure is not good for children, and also against the law, but it is okay for a child playing in their backyard to be exposed to toxic waste 24/7???   Isn't it strange how money changes everything, from health guidelines and standards to child endangerment.  So by choice the oil field workers chance of dying of cancer is extremely high and hopefully has saved some of those "big paychecks" or invested in a good insurance policy so his family will survive without him and pay the medical bills when he is gone without selling their home and all of their belongings.  And not by choice innocent people will also die.
Based on well-documented associations between occupational exposures and cancer, it is estimated that approximately 20,000 cancer deaths and 40,000 new cases of cancer each year in the U.S. are attributable to occupation.
Exposure to arsenic is suspected as the cause of many types of cancer. The types of cancers that are found in workers that are regularly exposed to arsenic are: skin cancer, scrotal cancer, liver cancer, cancer of the lymphatic system, and lung cancer.
These are just a few of the many facts on petroleum exposure and health risks.
Interesting that Texas is on the list as one of the top oil producing states and also has an extensive list of cancer treatment centers in their state.  Now North Dakota openly brags about being on this list also, but with few to no cancer treatment centers, so does that mean we all have to travel to Texas for treatment?  or does that mean we just die without treatment?  Why would anyone in North Dakota think that they are beyond getting cancer because of exposure from oilfield toxins? North Dakota probably rates number one for denial and failure to educate employees and public on environmental exposure to petroleum hazards. The North Dakota Health Department has totally failed in this department and worse than that has put many lives at risk.

Water Water Everywhere and Not a Thing to Drink

Unfortunately this statement does not mean there is no cold beer in the fridge.  Imagine if you can to live in the year 2011 without one usable drop of water in your household, or groundwater on your land.  It is hard to contemplate just how many daily tasks involve the use of water, until you no longer have water.  From the simple things like having clean dishes and taking a shower to keeping your livestock alive.  The average cow drinks 15 to 20 gallons of water daily, so when a person owning livestock purchases land, water is obviously a very important part of this decision.  Imagine now finding land in North Dakota with clean groundwater that runs year around for cattle, a golden opportunity.  Worse yet is the fact that when this water is contaminated with toxic chemicals, livestock has to be kept away from it, and not an easy thing to do when the grass that you graze is next to the toxic water.  How do you stop a creek or stream from running?  Now you have not only lost your water, but also your feed for livestock.  You now own a hazardous and totally useless piece of property, over something as simple as water.  Imagine spending three hours every day, seven days a week just hauling water to keep livestock alive and your household running.  Clean laundry, and a hot shower after a hard days work become a luxury.  Imagine taking a shower in water full of toxic chemicals that actually eats holes into you skin, and leaves sores and blisters.  Water full of toxic chemicals that create harmful gases that burn your lungs and have hazardous health effects when heated.  We don't imagine this at our home, we live it, every day, and it is 2011.

Oil Field Contamination and What We Eat

The last thing on one's mind when they cut into a thick juicy steak fresh off the BBQ grill is oil field contamination.  Wrong, not in any state that has both oilfield activity, farming and ranching.  As more and more water becomes toxic from oilfield and fracking, also is the ground that feeds livestock and grows crops.  The population is not only being killed by the air contamination full of toxic gases and chemicals but also through our food supply.  The farmers and ranchers of North Dakota have for years taken  pride in the products they market as some of the finest in the US.  Beef, pork, dairy, alfalfa, wheat, durum, corn, oats, peas, lentils, sunflowers, safflower,canola, sugar even barley for beer and others I'm sure I have left out. The point is that all food groups are effected by this, so what will be left to eat that will be SAFE?  Even the hunting and fishing industry in North Dakota will not be safe, venison, antelope, elk, pheasant, duck, goose, turkey, and fish will also be toxic for consumption.  Will we next have to rely on a country without contamination to also feed us? This information taken from a study entitled Health hazards associated with animal feed : Dioxins have also been known to contaminate forage crops grown in the vicinity of certain industrial processes.  It has been postulated that most human exposure to dioxins is as a result of foods of animal origin, which in turn may arise from the presence of dioxins in animal feeds. Dioxins accumulate in fat to a high degree, so even extremely low levels of dioxin in feed can become significant over the lifetime of an animal and result in unacceptable residues in human foods such as meat, milk, and eggs. How many spills and releases of toxic chemicals from fires have occurred  in North Dakota in just the past month that we have been told about, and how many more that we do not know about? How badly effected and contaminated is our food already? The latest report on chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing just released by the Committee on Energy came up with some very frightening facts that the ND Oil and Gas and ND Health Dept have allowed to happen within the state of North Dakota. These toxic, hazardous chemicals were used from 2005-2009,  how far and deep have they migrated into water and soil? What happened to the famous quote from then Gov John Hoeven  "we can regulate fracturing very well, thank you very much.” Something to think about when you sit down for dinner tonight, weather it be pasta or pork chops you are not safe knowing it may have been a North Dakota grown product.

Sue Your Neighbor

Here is another interesting turn of events in the money and greed battle of oil and gas and your rights to live a healthy life. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andrew-reinbach/stop-gas-drilling-sue-you_b_787881.html  some facts about how this works and your rights with basic laws.  Mineral owners that live in some sunny retirement village may finally be forced to take note of the fact that those oil checks don't come without a catch. As the saying goes, "nothing in life is free".  It is easy to sign leases to let a company access land and destroy the water, soil and air and not give it a second thought when you live six states away and are not affected by the toxic waste.  It is the surface owner who is forced to deal with the mess and cost, and gets paid nothing compared to the damage done to the land, their livestock and health.   Possibly a person may think twice before he signs on the dotted line, knowing that he may be paying the entire lease check and more plus legal costs to the neighbor who's rights have been damaged by his greed to get a piece of the pie? It is time people are held accountable for their actions, you do not give children  permission to play on the roof of your house, knowing what may happen and what you are liable for.  It is only right that the neighbor be compensated for the fact that his property values collapse, his water supply is at risk, and your right to enjoy your property has been destroyed.

Contamination and Land Value

North Dakota Legacy Fund, nice thought but how long will this last when the State of North Dakota becomes target for some of the largest lawsuits in history? 

One of the Legacy Fund bill sponsors, Rep. Merle Boucher, D-Rolette, said the opinion reinforces his change of mind about the timing of the fund. He said it's "premature" to put so much money away when there's such impact from oil development.

After driving through the oil patch in his campaign for state agriculture commissioner, "Now I have real reservations," Boucher said.
Everyone seems to be aware there are impacts from oil development and yet no one addresses these problems.  For some odd reason they think the people of North Dakota will just live with poor quality of life and unsafe road conditions and their happy little political career goes on and their personal bank accounts grow with pay offs. Will these same people be held accountable when the State of North Dakota becomes overwhelmed with lawsuits from angry land owners that can no longer make a living because the State of North Dakota has allowed the Oil Companies to contaminate the land and water from which they make their living?  Responsibility seems to be the word of the day, and much over looked by the State of North Dakota.  First and foremost it is the States responsibility to make sure residents of the State are safe, and have clean air, soil and water, this is our one of our CONSTITUTIONAL rights and the States job to ensure we have this right. Some research has brought up a nice little law that reads: The citizens of North Dakota can sue for violations of any “environmental statute,” which is defined as “any statute for the protection of the air, water, and natural resources, including land minerals and wildlife.”  I am far from an attorney, but this seem to be pretty cut and dry and easily understood, the State of North Dakota holds much responsibility in the picture here, and they don't seem to be holding up their end of the deal when it comes to Oil development.  Land and water contamination are a serious subject, and not easily fixed.  When ground water such as creeks and streams become contaminated with chemicals, how do you clean them? or contain that water so that contamination does not go further? This is really quite a domino effect, water flows from one creek to another and soon into the river and now drinking water for communities is also contaminated.  So even though you are not the landowner directly effected by the contamination, your health is at stake. One small problem not properly addressed by the State of North Dakota becomes a huge problem for the health of the entire State. The land value of property that is contaminated becomes ZERO, this land is unsellable, worthless for farming, livestock, wildlife and unlivable because of health conditions caused by contamination. The land becomes un-insurable and will not qualify under any federal programs. The contamination may start on one piece of land and continue for many miles onto other landowners property, soon you have hundreds of acres of condemned land. Logic tells you the next step, lawsuit to regain loss of revenue, land value and quality of life. I wonder how many of these lawsuits the State of North Dakota will be involved in? my guess is many, knowing how much of our land and water has been destroyed by failure to properly regulate the Oil and Gas industry within the State. Responsibility or rather failure of, will now cost the residents of North Dakota a huge chunk of change and depletion of the Legacy Fund, in addition to the BILLIONS of dollars it will cost in attempt to try to clean up the mess they have made.  Each and every resident of North Dakota will be effected by poor decisions made by poor politicians with fat bank accounts.

Ignorance is not Bliss

I have in the past stated that ignorance is bliss, I have now come to the conclusion that IGNORANCE IS DEADLY FOR EVERYTHING ASSOCIATED WITH IT. I have researched this subject for months, and come across many websites and bloggs  and read many comments that are left, with only one conclusion, it is definitely scary what the general public and average joe knows about oil and gas development and fracking. This industry and our local government have for too long distributed untrue propaganda to promote only their greed and ignore the safety of the population. I guess the general population is just so busy with day to day life, they do not take the time to actually educate them self on what is going on around them. The information is gotten from misinformed sources, their buddy sitting next to them at the local pub says it is safe, my dad did it for years, it has to be okay, and of course my favorite, the state would never let companies do something that wasn't safe. It is very easy to pull up articles and studies that have been done on the subject on the internet and READ, this is the way you educate yourself, and any responsible person will do exactly this. I have read comments left by people, obviously misinformed, that absolutely amaze me, here comes that word again IGNORANCE.  The Oil and Gas Industry has stated in almost every article printed that studies have proven their methods safe. In 6 months time of reading every day on this subject, I have yet to come across this information and actually read the documents that show this. If it is so safe and is proven so, why aren't these documents made readily to accessible to the public?  I have though come across hundreds of documents, scientific and case studies stating the exact opposite of what we are told. So maybe your buddy or dad is wrong, and perhaps you should educate yourself  before you open your mouth and ignorant words come out. There is that word again. From the people doing the work to the people spreading the information, ignorance is the key word. It is not that informed people do not what to see oil and gas industry, it is that we want to see it done safely, and not at the expense of our natural resources and health of the population, livestock, wildlife, animals and future generations. The average worker in the industry has no idea what they are being exposed to and are misinformed about the health risks involved. Of course this is not addressed on new employee orientation, if you knew this you wouldn't go out and bust your ass to make a million dollars for them. Too bad your son will not have their father there to watch them graduate, or see your grandchild take their first step. This brings to mind the history of the native american indian and United States beginning. Give food to the hungry and you can manipulate them to do most anything. When cancer research first started it took years to inform the public on the importance of screening and prevention. Our medical field has much to learn on the effects of environmental  health and information to the public. As with cancer, how many people will die before this happens?  Ignorance is not bliss, ignorance is deadly.

Remember When

As children we grew up roaming the hills and prairie, playing in the creek, always bringing home a new found treasure, be it a special rock or a baby cottontail. I remember more than one morning mom pulling a garter snake or cottontail out of her boot before she could put it on, sometime during the night escaping from it's shoebox home.  The world was our playground, I have never known in my life anything but clean air, green grass and clear running water. These things I thought I would always have and no one could ever take away from me. Now they have become nothing but memories, no longer here to pass on to our future generations. How sad that our children will not experience these simple joys of growing up. God's gift to us, the basis of health, wealth and happiness, our natural resources. A beautiful summer day, blue sky, sitting under a shade tree enjoying a picnic lunch breathing fresh, clean air, birds, butterflies and flowers. The day has come where we will only know these simple things through perhaps a movie we will watch, it has become a part of history. Money, greed and power have destroyed our source of continuous life. In high school I had a History teacher, I will never forget the statement he made to us one day in class, "we will become a communist country without a war, in your lifetime you will see a day you will have no constitutional rights" I thought at the time this was a crazy thing to say, impossible, it could never be. Our forefathers had fought too hard for our freedom and rights and put in place too many laws to protect us that this would never happen. How I now wish I would have listened closer to what he was saying and would love to sit down with him and have this conversation over. Our teachers have studied to teach us, and if we would only learn from them, and history what a different world we would live in. They say History repeats it's self, how far are we from total destruction?  From my kitchen window, it appears to not be far away, the land, water and air around me is destroyed more with each passing day. Without these basic building blocks, there is nothing to build.  Pick up your camera today, take a picture of a tree or a bird sitting on a fence, preserve a part of history, this may be the only way our children will ever know what these things were.

North Dakota Needs a Qualified Oil and Gas Director

Understaffed and overwhelmed, government oil field inspectors are struggling to provide adequate oversight amid an explosion of activity in North Dakota's oil patch, state and federal officials told The Associated Press.
Now this statement says it all, North Dakota is in serious need of some experienced staffing to lead this industry. Our current Director, has had little to no experience in the actual "oil drilling" field. Taken from Lynn Helms Bio :a roughneck in 1976 working summers and school holidays, now I doubt that someone who worked only a couple of summers and holidays was much more than worms corner, and that job takes little knowledge of drilling. He continued his oilfield experience as production engineer, now this job has absolutely nothing to do with drilling. This is all the work experience and drilling knowledge that Lynn Helms has, and yet states he is an expert on fracking, and knows everything about it and it's effects on our resources. His management skills do not appear to be much better, It's a fire drill every day," Lynn Helms, director of the state Department of Mineral Resources, said in an interview with the AP. "We need more properly trained enforcement people helping the industry stay on track." He makes this statement, but continues to hand out new permits faster than office staff can print them out. As in any business, when things get out of control, the business fails, as we are seeing here in North Dakota and feeling the effects already of poor leadership. So this is an acceptable excuse as to why our natural resources are being destroyed?  Hundreds of oilfield spills and thousands of waste disposal sites are being untended or are infrequently monitored, this taken also from the same Bismarck Tribune article, and our Oil and Gas Department allows this to go on, issues more permits, acknowledges there is a problem, and makes no changes in this department. North Dakota definitely has some staffing issues.

Surface Rights

Now in North Dakota surface rights have become non existing. Oil Companies trespass on your land, dig up soil with a backhoe, contaminate  your soil and water with oil, saltwater and chemical spills and our North Dakota Oil and Gas Department will do absolutely nothing.  You can provide their short staffed department with pictures, facts, figures and reports, thinking you should possibly have some rights since ownership is in your name, you pay land taxes and you have worked your whole life to pay for this land, but NO nothing is done on your behalf.  This is taken from the North Dakota Oil and Gas Rules and Regulations
38-08-01. DECLARATION OF POLICY. It is hereby declared to be in the public
interest to foster, to encourage, and to promote the development, production, and utilization of
natural resources of oil and gas in the state in such a manner as will prevent waste; to authorize and
to provide for the operation and development of oil and gas properties in such a manner that a
greater ultimate recovery of oil and gas be had and that the correlative rights of all owners be fully
protected; and to encourage and to authorize cycling, recycling, pressure maintenance, and
secondary recovery operations in order that the greatest possible economic recovery of oil and gas
be obtained within the state to the end that the landowners, the royalty owners, the producers, and
the general public realize and enjoy the greatest possible good from these vital natural resources.
Source: N.D. Century Code.
Now I also found on this site the Director's name is Lynn Helms, it would be a safe assumption that this declaration would be part of his job description.  Now I think it is also safe to say with employment that when you take a job and are given description of this job and what is expected of you and you do not meet your job description you soon find you are unemployed. So why then is Lynn Helms still the Director of North Dakota Oil and Gas?  I wonder who reviews his position?  If this is a law, why is it not enforced?  Why are laws made when the enforcers of these laws pick and choose when to use them?
So now you the landowner sit with the expense of  having to clean up the soil to farm, contaminated water so your livestock are now in jeopardy and still paying tax dollars to wages of  someone not doing their job. This is a no win situation, unless you are an out of state Oil Company or a ND State employee, then it is a win win situation.  I made the mistake of choosing an honest way to make a living.

North Dakota Water Contaminated with Fracking Fluid

Now at this present time the clever lawmakers in North Dakota are doing everything they can to protect the Oil Companies working within the State.  They have gone out of their way to create laws to allow them to destroy our natural resources legally. I would like to see our Lawmakers, take oath, put their hand on a bible and state they are not aware of contamination by fracking in the State of North Dakota. Last I checked it was the job of the State to first and fore most protect the welfare of the citizens of the State. Now I do believe welfare would include clean air and water being top on the list. But in the State of North Dakota it is the welfare of out of state Oil Companies and tax dollars that over rule human life, they furiously try to pass laws before it becomes common knowledge to the public that our water and air is contaminated.  Now I doubt that any North Dakota State official will admit to anyone that the water in North Dakota has already been contaminated with fracking fluid, but black and white facts prove IT IS.  Each day more private water wells and natural waterways are showing large amounts of inorganic compounds that just happen to be used in fracking, what a surprise. Why wouldn't it happen in North Dakota, it has happened in every other State that fracking takes place. Because our North Dakota Lawmakers have a handle on it!  And they actually think that we are stupid enough to believe this. Facts about fracking fluid in water:  it takes only 1% of fracking fluid in water to be deadly. Between 3,840,000 to 26,880,000 gallons of fracking chemicals to be used in one square mile — hardly a minor amount.  Of the chemicals identified by DEP as being used in fracking fluid, 34 are soluble, allowing them to move into surface and underground water. These include chemicals that cause cancer and disorders of the brain and nervous system, blood, and the immune system.  Twenty-one chemicals are readily airborne, including nine that cause reproductive problems and six known carcinogens. All the known airborne chemicals can harm the skin, respiratory tract, gastrointestinal tract or liver — problems frequently reported near fracking wells across the U.S.  This is not only affecting human lives across the State but also our livestock, wildlife, animals and agriculture.  Represented on the Great Seal of North Dakota are all of the mentioned, perhaps our Lawmakers should take a look at this, as they have completely turned their backs on the welfare of the agriculture community.  They are allowing contamination of air, water and soil, three things that we will not live long without.

House Bill 1287 Open Season on Anything that BREATHES

In a previous blogg I gave information about North Dakota not abiding by the Clean Air Act and the EPA stating that no more, it is time that they start following rules. This was posted on December 8, titled Clean up Your Act North Dakota. Now the State of North Dakota's answer to this is to make a new law that protects them from the EPA and doing what they say. House Bill 1287 - Environmental protection agency rule approval required.
Rules adopted by the environmental protection agency are null and void and of no force
and effect in this state without the approval of the state agency with subject matter jurisdiction in
the area governed by the rule. The environmental protection agency may not conduct visitations
or inspections in this state without the prior approval and permission of the state agency with
subject matter jurisdiction of the subject matter of the visitation or inspection.

This will only give the State of North legal authority to commit murder. The EPA MUST have the right to oversee the welfare of the people. Air quality is one of the most important issues on health conditions within the State of North Dakota at this time. The North Dakota State Health Department has already refused to monitor air quality and this would allow them to continue this practice. I am living proof that air quality is the source of extreme health conditions and also death of livestock, wildlife  and animals.

Quality of Life

I just finished reading the State of the State Address by our new Gov Jack Dalrymple. The things you do when  the air is so bad you can't sleep. He addresses the Quality of Life in North Dakota, his words Our efforts in economic development and education are producing a quality of life in North Dakota that is improving every year.  But we must work hard to protect and preserve that quality of life against all challenges. It is evident he has not visited Frackville ND lately. We in this community have NO quality of life. I guess quality of life is rated by the amount of tax revenue the state is collecting on oil and how good the State Officials look because of the figures. We are forced to drive on unsafe roads, breath toxic polluted air, and have no rights to protect our private property from damage. In the fight to survive from day to day, we have forgotten what quality of life is. Just a speech, no one really believes any of this anyway. Did anyone other than myself notice the contributions to John Hoeven the past campaign. If you didn't, here is the info: http://www.opensecrets.org/races/contrib.php?cycle=2010&id=NDS1

Contributor	Total
Hess Corp	$21,600
Murray Energy	$20,789
NorPAC	$19,700
Berkshire Hathaway	$18,000
Xcel Energy	$18,000
FPL Group	$17,900
Haley's PAC	$15,000
State of North Dakota	$14,800
Marvin Windows	$14,600
Scheels All Sports	$14,600
Marathon Oil	$14,400
TRT Holdings	$14,400
Travelers Companies	$13,500
Missouri Basin Well Service	$12,500
Devon Energy	$12,300
Nacco Industries	$11,000
Trust Co of the West	$10,600

It is apparent where the influence within the State of North Dakota is from these figures, and how decisions are made for our welfare. A recent article on the front page of  the Williston Herald http://www.willistonherald.com/articles/2011/01/02/news/doc4d1f862c04cec712979903.txt
Some area officials would like a more controlled pace. Williams County Commission Chairman Dan Kalil said county officials would like the state Industrial Commission to show more restraint in permitting wells.

"We need to be communicating with the Industrial Commission that we can't handle the pace. We don't have the housing, we don't have the infrastructure and we don't have the road system to handle it," said Kalil.
Lynn Helms, director of the Department of Mineral Resources, has recently been saying he expects approximately 2,000 new wells will be drilled this year.Regardless of the concerns, the new wells are likely to be in the 2,000 range. Helms recently told the Bismarck Tribune that there are already 870 permits ready for this year. He added that 10 to 20 new applications are coming in to his department each week.
 Is this responsible government leadership? A county has very important concerns about the fast paced development and impacts, the safety of the residents and the State of ND says TOO BAD! I guess if you live in Bismarck it won't affect you, and you don't care as long as the money is coming in and you look good.
Have to keep those contributors happy, there will be another campaign in a few more years. Quality of Life!

Frack Alphabet by Kris Kitko & Friends

How To Trash a Township in Twelve Months

I am driving down the road and see a speed limit sign that says 55 MPH, in a hurry I drive 75MPH but that is okay, because when I get home I get on the internet and report to the ND State Highway Dept that I have violated the law. NOT going to happen, laws are made for reasons. But yet this is the system that our North Dakota Government is using to regulate the Oil and Gas Industry. Did anyone really think this would work? I guess our Congress did. Even when violators are found, nothing is done to them, the damage has been done, but no revenue from fines or violations are collected. These are TAX DOLLARS that are owed to the residents of North Dakota, god knows we pay our fair share of taxes.  Now it is these tax dollars that are PAYING someone to alloy this damage to our state. The damage it takes ONE company to do to our natural resources in ONE day will take mother nature NINE YEARS TO REPAIR, now I say mother nature because our ND State Health Dept or ND Oil and Gas are NOT doing anything to prevent, repair or planning for the future welfare of the State. We read endless reports of how well the Oil and Gas Companies are doing in North Dakota and how much their profits are soaring, everyone is flocking to North Dakota to make MILLIONS at our expense. Our roads are trashed, the counties and townships cannot afford to maintain the  extensive damage done to them. The school systems are overloaded and we are expected to accommodate the demands of the additional population overnight. Parents expect their children to be bussed  from their front door and taken to school.  People from out of state complain that our streets are not cleaned good enough for them. People are allowed to live in campers and run their sewer on the ground. And most important we should give them a place to live because they came here to work, knowing there were not places to live. All of this at the expense of the North Dakota Taxpayer. Now when that big Oilfield Paycheck and jobs are no longer here, who will be left to pay the taxes and expenses of the clean up? You guessed it, US, the born and raised residents of the State Of North Dakota. So why then should our ND State Government allow companies to not pay for damages done to our State and NOT regulate activity in the Oil and Gas Industry? Once again the State of North Dakota has proven that their decisions in rule making is not working, much like the decision to not abide to the CLEAN AIR ACT, and make their own rules there also.