Sunday, December 30, 2012

Happy New Year!

Pending and Permitted Shale Gas Well Pad Sites Grand Prairie, TX (December 18, 2012) Grand Prairie, TX Shale Gas Pad Sites and Well Information Updates (12.18.2012)


To find the location for the documents above you need only go to the City of Grand Prairie, TX website.  Click on the tabs as shown below:

  Departments & Services/Services A-H/Gas Drilling.  Yes. That's it!  
And you can find it in alphabetical order between  
Garbage Collection and the  
Graffiti Hotline.  Click on over there and see for yourself
 It's a BIG Yee Haw!


Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Holiday Madness in North Texas (December 2012) *UPDATES*

Saturday Afternoon in the North TX Burbs

This is the Construction Area for the Camp Wisdom Road Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) Site
 (also known as Pipeline Boring)
(No City or State Regulations for Signage, Fencing or Inspections)
The Construction Manager told us that this is a 40-45 Deep Hole under that broken wood. 


This is all for the Installation of the Gas Gathering and 
Transmission Pipeline Systems
in SW Grand Prairie and SE Arlington, TX.

  
All of it within a Few Feet of Our Suburban Neighborhoods and NEW $200,000 Homes.


*UPDATE: For the Curious In the Audience* 
 During the week, Boots Smith Oilfield Services is doing this.  All of it under our streets & neighborhoods! 
**************  

Oh, in case you missed it, here's the Recent Industry Pornography  Obscenity
on Display in Fort Worth, TX and we hear it was/is up on the Dallas North Tollway, too. 
Downtown Fort Worth, Texas (November 2012)
 

As that Famous Philosopher Yogi Berra Often Said:
"It Ain't Over Til It's Over."

**UPDATE**:  After a COMPLAINT was filed with the RRC, a meeting was scheduled and completed with the pipeline company and the RRC Inspector on December 3, 2012.  A flimsy fence was then erected by the next morning. (Note:  The site was still wide open to anyone or anything from the back side.) Of course, this fence was not a requirement. It was only done to show us that they were being good neighbors.  So much for "REGULATION." Yee Haw. Oh, and our city's response? They considered it no different than sewer line boring. And after showing them our unbelievable pictures during a City Council Meeting, they did nothing. That's right. NOTHING. Happy New Year.

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Happy Thanksgiving! *UPDATE*

Delicious Anti-freeze
 
2860 West Camp Wisdom Road
Grand Prairie, Texas
November 18, 2012

Yummy Drilling Mud 
Next to Church & Soccer Field
at 2860 West Camp Wisdom Road
 
 
~ And for Dessert ~
A Tasty UNodorized Gas Gathering 
(or Transmission) Pipeline!
(Early November 2012.  This gas pipeline is being prepped for burial beneath Oncor Power Line Easement running through the middle of  one of our local suburban neighborhoods. The description of the plans for these pipelines mention gas gathering 
And/Or TRANSMISSION pipelines.


 More Turkey, Please!!


*Update* 
Whoops!!  Forgot the Gravy
The cranberries are in there, too!
 

♥♥ Bon Appétit!! ♥♥

Friday, November 02, 2012

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

A Big Thank You! from TX HD105 Rep Linda Harper-Brown

i love this country. the republic of Texas. i want to end all welfare. if you can afford 200 dollar nikes you can pay for you watermelon. ~ katy, texas



Careful the Things you Say
Children Will Listen

Education Forum Tonight in Grand Prairie, Texas featuring the candidates for TX House District Representative 105 ~ Mrs. Linda Harper-Brown and Dr. Rosemary Robbins. Y'all Come. Click Here for the particulars. 

It's  A Bonafide Crisis here in Texas ~ In case you haven't heard.(Maybe someone will remind the current HD105 Rep, Mrs. Linda Harper-Brown of that FACT, tonight.)

Monday, October 15, 2012

TX House Rep Linda Harper-Brown Has a Party!

So, who would throw this Fancy Fundraising Party for 
Mrs. H-Brown?

As you can see, her Tweet only gives last names of other current Republican House Reps in North TX, an Unnamed Longhorn that was Alive and "Over 200 Unnamed People." 

We hear from our friends in Irving, TX that Mrs. H-Brown loves nice things! Even if it's been questionable as to how she acquires them!

Apparently, from all accounts, the "Fancy Fundraising Party" was Friday from 1~3 PM at the Mansion on Turtle Creek!   Awesome!!  We had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for our lunch Friday!  It was Delish!

Anywho, we're just getting to know Mrs. H-Brown, but we also hear she simply Adores Luxury Cars, too, like this one:  


Click here to see a listing from an Events Calendar for the Big Fundraiser at the  magnificent Mansion! Looks like the Texas Civil Justice League was involved?

Wow!  This party makes us wonder since it was so far away from the suburbs of Grand Prairie and Irving and TX House District 105 voters!  And then there's this April 20, 2012 News Update ~ we wonder if the Texas Civil Justice League knows??!




Unnamed Texas Longhorn (Alive)

Tuesday, October 02, 2012

TX House District 105 Candidate Linda Harper-Brown Rudely Dismisses Democrats AND Republicans in Her OWN District

Twitter Update from Linda Harper-Brown Campaign


WOW! Looks like Mrs. Linda Harper-Brown has the SAME problem with representing only HER people as presidential candidate Mitt Romney has with only caring for HIS people! 


It's a terrible trend in politics. And really leaves a very BAD TASTE in our mouth.

Amen.

P.S.  In case you missed it...this is the same Mrs. Linda Harper-Brown who simply loves our Texas Railroad Commission Chairman Barry Smitherman! We wonder about his ability to separate "regulation from politics" based on his Facebook page. It's one big biased political firestorm over there!!

And here's a sampling of Mrs. Harper-Brown's people who must feel the same way she does  since they're all members in good standing of the Texas Conservative Coalition Research Institute (TXCCRI).  We have to wonder about their research. 

Mrs. Linda Harper-Brown reminds us that Grand Prairie, TX business owners are "nice people" in her tweet.  Well, yes. We agree.  

But truly, Mrs. Linda Harper-Brown, you really do need to apologize to all the Democrats AND Republicans in Grand Prairie, TX who also happen to be business owners since you clearly don't give one twit tweet about any of them!!

Amen.

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Regarding the USACE Ruling

(Scroll down to Page 25 ~ Page 28 on the Document)
Joe Pool Lake Dam 
Appeals Court Reverses Katrina Decision
(Reuters) - (September 25, 2012) A U.S. appeals court has reversed itself (yesterday September 24, 2012) and found that the Army Corps of Engineers cannot be held liable in property owners' lawsuits over flood damage during Hurricane Katrina. More than 400 property owners had filed lawsuits following the August 2005 hurricane, many targeting the Corps of Engineers.  
The plaintiffs had alleged the Corps of Engineers delayed armoring the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet shipping channel against flood damage due to incorrect scientific decisions rather than public policy considerations. In an unusual move, a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans on Monday withdrew its earlier ruling in March that had been in the plaintiffs' favor. 

Monday's ruling came after the federal government sought review of the panel's earlier decision by the full appeals court. Judge Jerry Smith, writing for the court, said the Corps of Engineers is immune from being held liable for property damage under the so-called "discretionary function exception" to the Federal Tort Claims Act, which governs litigation against the U.S. government. 

The exception bars lawsuits against the government for conduct arising from statutes and regulations that don't require an agency's action but involve its discretion. [emphasis added.]
A Little Background and More:  In 1996 the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) decided, "No leasing of federal land for drilling activities within a 3,000 foot buffer zone of Joe Pool Lake Dam."  NSO (No Surface Occupancy) and ND (No Drilling) (See Page 25 in the above document.)   

So, in 2010, Chesapeake Energy drilled and fracked within 850 FT. of the Joe Pool Lake Dam and Spillway! OOPS.  USACE later tells our community, "We didn't know Chesapeake planned to do this."  Hmmmm...Is this 1) USACE using their discretion to NOT KNOW; 2) USACE not knowing their own regulations;  and/or 3) Chesapeake Energy using the City of Grand Prairie, TX, a church with an ever-changing name, homeowners who have no idea what's going on, AND the United States Army Corps of Engineers ~ Was/Is this Chesapeake using all these parties to make it appear well and good to do as they Da** well please??

That Jury is clearly still out (far out) on this one.  Meanwhile, let's refresh our memories and re-read our story from September 25, 2011 (exactly one year ago today, ironically ) about all the myriad possibilities. Amen.
 
Dam

Monday, September 24, 2012

Gov. Perry selling Arlington, TX to Chinese Investors?

Yee Haw.
  
Was this really a news story? Arlington is referred to as a "mature" city!! 

Link to the Story and Video.

Thursday, September 20, 2012

26 Killed When Pipeline Leaked and Then Exploded

Reynosa, Mexico 
September 18, 2012
CIUDAD VICTORIA, Mexico (AP) — A big fire erupted at a natural gas pipeline distribution center near Mexico's border with the United States on Tuesday, killing 26 maintenance workers and forcing evacuations of people in nearby ranches and homes.
Mexico's state-owned oil company, Petroleos Mexicanos (also known as Pemex) initially reported 10 deaths at the facility near the city of Reynosa, across from McAllen, Texas.
Later, the death toll was raised to 26, including a man who was run over when he rushed onto a highway running away from the facility. Pemex said at a news conference Tuesday night that the fire was extinguished in 90 minutes and the pipeline was shut off. The pipeline carries natural gas from wells in the Burgos basin.
The company's director-general, Juan Jose Suarez, said four of those killed were Pemex employees and the rest were employed by contractors. He told reporters in Reynosa that 46 other workers were injured, including two hospitalized in serious condition. Suarez said they haven't found any evidence showing it was an attack.
Company executives said there was a gas leak, followed by an explosion, but the precise cause had not been determined. "Why there was such leak is something that must be investigated," said Carlos Morales Gil, Pemex's director of exploration and production.
Civil protection officials evacuated ranches and homes within three miles (five kilometers) of the gas facility, which is about 12 miles (19 kilometers) southwest of Reynosa.
Authorities didn't say how many people were evacuated, but the area is sparsely populated, Tamaulipas state's civil protection director Pedro Benavides told a Televisa station.[emphasis added.]
Click Here for Link to Story.

Sunday, September 16, 2012

"Hushed" by Chesapeake

Get Microsoft Silverlight
(Be sure to play this video on your PC or MAC. Embedded videos using the Silverlight Microsoft application won't play on iPhone or other smartphones or iPads ~ iOS devices. We're very sorry, but there are clearly limitations to the Silverlight software in 2012.)

Follow these easy steps to download the Silverlight application to your MAC: Click here for how to stream a meeting on my MAC. And here's another link to some additional info if you have trouble viewing the video: Additional Info.
Click here for the link to the June 5, 2012 Arlington, TX City Council Meeting. Then scroll over to 57:08 (57 Minutes, 08 Seconds) for the Rocking Horse Drilling Site Agenda Item Discussion from the citizen of South East Arlington, TX. She talks about "being hushed," at the May 31, 2012 Community Meeting conducted by Chesapeake, the likely Statewide Rule 37 Spacing Exception for mineral owners on this leasehold AND unpaid royalties for Chesapeake's Fulson site in her own neighborhood.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

"Tremors" (*Updated*)

About the Chesapeake Rocking Horse Drilling Site
Arlington, Texas ~ June 5, 2012
Get Microsoft Silverlight
(Be sure to play this video on your PC or MAC. Embedded videos using the Silverlight Microsoft application won't play on iPhone or other smartphones, iPads ~ iOS devices. We're very sorry for this inconvenience.)
 
Click here for the link to the June 5, 2012 City Council Meeting. Then scroll over to 53:27 (53 Minutes, 27 Seconds) for the Rocking Horse Drilling Site Agenda Item Discussion from the community leader about the "tremors."
 
(*Updated*) See the comments, please.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

$587,620.00 Lump Sum **Updated with Links**

You may recall that there were precisely three attempts made by our Grand Prairie, TX City Council to place unodorized gas gathering pipelines in our Westchester and other South Grand Prairie, TX neighborhoods last fall and in the final Public Hearing on January 3rd, 2012 (we'll link to those stories in a little while).
**Updated with Links**Click Here, Click Here, Click Here and Yes, Click Here.

Certain members of our southern Grand Prairie community presented statements in opposition to these lateral gathering pipelines that would run through the heart of our community. It was a pipeline system many considered to be "inevitable."

It all happened between Thanksgiving and the New Year and made for a festive 2nd straight year of spending our holidays with the gas drilling issue front and center. We thank DFW Midstream and our own Grand Prairie, TX City Manager and City Council for making it all possible.  Those attempts failed.

Now, we hear from our Trailwood neighbors (to the west of Westchester) that gas gathering pipeline markers have actually been staked out for the placement of a new route for these gathering pipelines since long before the summer.  DFW Midstream (in $$cooperation$$ with our City and other cities in the Barnett Shale) tries very hard to be a utility  since utility companies do what they do "for the public good." Sadly, the shale gas business wants us to see them as a very well-regulated "public utility," unfortunately, they're not.

Question #1: If you think that placing unodorized gas gathering pipelines within 50 yards of children attending Dickinson Elementary School is a rational and sane idea, please raise your hand? Anyone?
Dickinson Elementary School's Web site



Question #2:  How much is it worth to bring this kind of DANGER within a very short distance of the playgrounds for very young children in our community...or ANY community?? ANSWER:  $587,620 (lump sum) is the price in Grand Prairie, Texas (look at the above "Financial Consideration," Revenue: $587,620 ~ as seen on the Agenda Details for tonight's City Council Meeting.)



Some may remember this...and some may wish they didn't:
Yes. They were "unodorized" gas distribution pipelines. 

Thursday, August 16, 2012

The GasFRAC Cometh: Proven "Proprietary" Process?? Or Just Another Disaster in the Making! **Update**

As seen on Interstate 20 headed East from Grand Prairie, TX
Sunday, August 12, 2012


Numerous patents/Numerous pending
Proven innovative technology

GASFRAC has developed an innovative closed stimulation process and injection method, utilizing gelled LPG rather than conventional frac fluids.

The LPG used in the closed GASFRAC system is primarily propane, C3H8, a naturally occurring hydrocarbon that is non-damaging to the formation.[emphasis added.]

And the "proprietary" GasFRAC prevents vapour buildup?

GASFRAC's proprietary LPG process is designed for maximum safety. Our pressurized, closed system ensures the process is completely controlled and that the LPG gel maintains its fluid state—with zero exposure to oxygen—preventing vapour build-up.[emphasis added.]

** Update:   Hmmm. Apparently, this blog post landed on a stock market message board!??  We have had more hits on this blog post within the last 24 hours than any of our posts in such a time period, lately.  Too bad.  The stock market crowd only wants to know how GasFRAC is doing. They really don't seem to care about the BIG PICTURE.  And want to tell us how the cow ate the cabbage...rather than how the cows died from drinking the fracking fluid. 


Oh, and to the Anonymous commenter who left such a detailed reprimand for us ~ Thank you.  Unfortunately, it was accidentally deleted by our iPhone. Please post it again, and we'll be sure to post it as long as the condescension is down a notch or two. Thank you, everyone, for reading. And try to think about making your money from businesses that are in business for the good of humanity.  This ain't it. Amen.

Sunday, August 05, 2012

Cowboys, Baseball and Gas Drilling ~ Yee Haw!

Truman Drilling Site 
(2 Leaseholds Pooled Units converging  ~Truman and Bobcat ~ totaling 1,020 acres with plans for 14 shale gas wells)

You can certainly find more information about ALL the drilling operations in Arlington, TX by clicking here and visiting Chesapeake's Arlington Neighborhood Center.  It's very user-friendly. We count 35 Chesapeake drilling sites inside the Arlington, TX city limits. Beautiful!

Based on what we've learned, and what we know about shale gas, the FRAC Pond you see in the picture (the pond in the lower left that's holding the brownish-colored water)  ~ this FRAC Pond and the accompanying drilling operations will be a fixture in the core of the Arlington, TX downtown business sector for many years to come.  [Are you reading this Dallas?]

So, bring out the Welcome Wagon.


The Truman has landed!  AMEN.

**Update:  Here's some more detail.  Just in case you aren't sure what you are seeing. We understand how it's hard to know with all of this. It's a very special and unique new neighbor.

Friday, August 03, 2012

Monster Fire and Explosion. Tulsa, Oklahoma Refinery Fire

It happened early yesterday morning (August 2, 2012). A Dallas-based company operates the refinery.
KJRH News Report
Posted: 08/02/2012 Last Updated: 21 hours and 44 minutes ago TULSA - No one was injured Thursday when the HollyFrontier Refinery caught fire in west Tulsa. Just before 2:30 a.m.,an explosion was heard coming from the refinery near 23rd and Southwest Boulevard. Flames could be seen shooting several feet into the air and the glow was seen at least 6 miles away.
Refinery officials say the fire started in the diesel hydrotreater unit at the Tulsa East refinery, which is the old Sinclair refinery. The fire was contained by the company's emergency response team. All personnel were accounted for and there were no reported injuries.
Officials say there is no risk to the surrounding community and that a full investigation is under way to determine the cause of the fire. (emphasis added.)

Monday, July 30, 2012

Dallas, TX City Hall. Wednesday. August 1, 2012. 1:00 PM. Be There!



The details are here ~ on the Dallas Observer. We learned just today that Ed Ireland, PhD, of the Barnett Shale Energy Education Council (BSEEC) will be speaking on behalf of the gas operators. 

BlueDaze has kept up with Mr. Ireland for several years, now. He's been very busy keeping all of us informed.

It's a critical day for Dallas and the entire North Texas region. Heck! The world will be closely watching to see what happens! It should be HOT!  


No pressure, Dallas! :=)

Saturday, July 28, 2012

The Rally in Washington, D.C. Saturday, July 28, 2012

Livestreaming via UStream: The Rally Live 
(Now that it is archived, this USTREAM video won't play on your Smartphone...
View it from your PC or MAC)


Free desktop streaming application by Ustream

Click here to watch the rest of the story. It explains a lot.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

City of Arlington, TX on a Serious Mission?

So, WHAT's the Big Emergency??
Get Microsoft Silverlight
(Note: The above video may not play using some phones ~ so be sure to open the video from your PC or your MAC.)


Dateline June 5, 2012.  Arlington, TX 
Arlington City Council Meeting 6:30 PM 

Interesting. Apparently, this portion of the Agenda (as shown in the above video clip) is a Public Hearing to define the "drill zone" for the "so-called" (Mayor's words) Eden Southwest Drill Site because prior to these Modifications to the *Gas Drilling Ordinance* (XTO's Walter Dueease's words) no operator was required to define the drill zone in their plans. Oops.

After a quick discussion, the Mayor asks about the homes outside 600 feet of the drilling zone. Outside?  600 Feet?  Mr. Dueease tells the Mayor that they don't usually count that!!  Oh, well.  Yes. What?  Then the Mayor and Mr. Dueease go back and forth about it for several more rounds! (Be sure to watch it.) The Mayor seems to confuse Mr. Dueease, (we know he confused us) but then neither one of them would acknowledge any confusion whatsoever.  

Kind of like when men get lost..
.you know how that works...they never ask directions!!  Yeah, that kind of situation.  So, neither one of these two men ever asked the other one to please explain it better ~ the train wreck in full motion right before our eyes, and wow, it's get out the popcorn time!! LOL!!

And for such a serious matter being voted on ~ and it must be because it was designated as an "Emergency" ~ then Councilwoman Sheri Capehart jumps in and asks Mr. Dueease (not to confuse, but "just for clarification purposes"??) if he is alright with doing this First Reading on an Emergency Basis?  Mr. Dueease, who seems to have the knack for changing gears quickly and who certainly knows how to be brief and to the point without showing any outward signs of braggadocio, replies succinctly and with firm conviction,

 "Yes, Ma'am."

So, after watching all of this, we really do have to ask this important question...and we're serious, too:

 "WHO'S on First"?

**Update** You won't want to miss Mr. Dueease's featured role in the Temporary FRAC Pond saga on the Fish Creek Monitor. Click here.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Baldwin Hills Dam Failure in 1963 **Update**

It was never going to fail.
"In 1951, when it was built in Los Angeles, the Baldwin Hills Dam was hailed as a $10 Million Dollar State-of-the-Art Engineering Masterwork."
According to the above video. shown on Australian TV in 2010, it started with a pencil-thin crack. Watch the video. The History Channel has done a magnificent job of detailing what happened on December 14, 1963 in Baldwin Hills ~ while our country was still recovering from the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

5 people died. 65 homes were destroyed.

600 oil wells were located in the Inglewood Oil Field on the eastern edge of the Dam. And not only that, as the investigators discovered at the time, the oil was being extracted from these oil wells using a method of extraction that involved injecting water into the ground around the well at very high pressure. Back then, it was called, "pressurized extraction."

Investigators concluded that seismic activity was the "hidden factor"  in this dam's failure.  This was 1963.  In 2012, seismic activity has been an everyday occurrence around North Texas.  

Even yesterday (June 23, 2012), there was another recorded earthquake near Cleburne, Texas ~ the 3rd one in North Texas since June 5th.

Dam. Dam. and Dam.

Moratorium on our Joe Pool Lake Dam. Amen.

Click here to read the March 28, 2012 story from the Fort Worth Star Telegram about "Improvements to the Dam." (There's a mistake in the story ~ the City of GP's Moratorium is through January 2013 and will be extended as warranted.)

**Update**: From the comments

Click here to see a current community blog from Baldwin Hills. These pictures are horrific.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Chesapeake Pulls Out **Update**

"We Don't Know Where They're Going!"  
Ft. Worth, TX Mayor Betsy Price (June 11, 2012)

**Update** ~ June 19, 2012



FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM)-[...]Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price, who has been working to position the city as a shale gas capitol, said any struggles for a business are concerning, but she doesn’t think they’re permanent.

"I think it goes with the cyclical turn in the economy and the lower gas prices and I believe it’ll come back," she [Betsy Price] said.

Chesapeake’s VP of Urban Development Julie Wilson said in an email to CBS11 that the building isn’t listed for sale. She followed by writing "As with any property we own in North Texas — or anywhere else, for that matter — we are always willing to entertain an offer!"[...]{emphasis added}