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Message: <blockquote data-quote="wjschmaltz" data-source="post: 345678" data-attributes="member: 6150">So I'm trying to follow along here.  The oil companies have moved along and now the state is paying to plug the wells with tax payer money? And on top of that, they're going to use the tax payer's money to convert them into water wells for the farmers that have been getting paid out millions in royalty checks? (i understand not all surface rights holders also have mineral rights) The residents of ND should be on the phone nonstop about stuff like this.  $100,000 bond to drill a well is so laughable it hurts. The State of Alaska required a half million in bond just to operate a small soil thermal treatment operation.  I've been involved with remediation projects where a 100 gallon underground diesel tank spilled and is causing massive contamination to the groundwater and $100K wouldn't even touch a project like that. What a joke and a slap in the face of the citizens of ND.  Helms has been shafting the folks of ND and personally cashing in off the destruction of the land and environment so hard for decades that it makes a person want to puke.  Dalrymple and Hoeven enabled him so I guess if we're pointing fingers, let's be completely fair.  Like others, I'm pro O&G and have earned my stripes as a roughneck. There is such a thing as too far for regulations when it comes to oil and gas and it's important to be "friendly" for O&G to invest in a state.  But look at places like California and Alaska; they both boast environmental regulations 100x more stringent than ND and oil companies are lined up out the door to drill. It's long term certainty that is the problem when it comes to oil companies committing (in AK, stringent long term regulations are well-defined but the feds teeter on leasing; in CA leasing is less of an issue but the political climate makes it unclear what regulations will look like year-on-year).  ND is a free for all of no regulation and I don't think they're ever seen a drilling permit they didn't like. I think Helms would approve drilling in a preschool playground as long as the oil company provided hearing protection for the kids.I would love to see ND have an open drilling policy with well-defined regulations and accountability for oil companies. I promise it wouldn't slow things down a tic.  I won't hold my breath.  Also, what kind of tooling is needed to plug a well and then drill down to the aquifer through the concrete (sounds like 200 feet).  And then hope you know exactly where the water table is and then somehow fracture 4 inch casing, surrounded by concrete, surrounded by 5 inch casing surrounded by concrete, surrounded by 10 inch surface casing surrounded by concrete. And then get all of that back up the hole to not contaminate and/or plug the well.  I know nothing about this so I'm seriously interested in how that's cheaper than simply drilling a 200 foot water well exactly to where water is.  If it's seriously $75k, let me know and I'll send a buddy down there with his air rotary rig and he'll gladly drill them for $50k each and laugh his way to the bank with the extra $30K per well in his pocket.  About 15 years ago when I worked for the NDGF, we invited Ted Helms to our annual meeting to discuss wildlife and environmental issues associated with O&G development.  He decided he would give his half hour presentation that he gives to everyone bragging about all the wells approved and drilled including lots of picture of wells along rivers and on outcroppings and saddles in the badlands.  When he got done, the room full a frustrated fish and wildlife professionals that just listened to his destructive brag session let him have it.  It was AWESOME.  After about 15 minutes he cowered out and made up some excuse and went right to his pickup.</blockquote>

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