NOTE: Former DeLuca administration employee Timothy Riley mentioned in the article below is an environmental attorney in Florida. He advises and represents clients on matters of state and federal environmental law, particularly regarding construction activities within wetlands and other environmentally sensitive areas, oil and gas development, and water use. Timothy’s clients are primarily from the manufacturing and public utility industries, but he also advises real estate developers, commercial wetland mitigation banks, and agricultural enterprises.
Fort Worth Star Telegram / May 21, 2003 / Kelly Melhart - Staff Writer
Council approves oil and gas drilling in Flower Mound
Oil and gas drilling could begin in town within weeks.
The Town Council is expected to lift a 10-month moratorium on drilling permits June 1. The move would follow Monday's unanimous council approval of an ordinance that sets guidelines for drilling for oil and natural gas.
Restrictions in the 68-page ordinance will probably limit drilling to the largely undeveloped far western part of town near U.S. 377 and Farm Road 1171. Wells cannot be drilled within 1,000 feet of a public park, a house or a freshwater well.
"Oil and gas production is coming to Flower Mound. We want an ordinance that addresses all the factors," town environmental resources manager Timothy Riley told the council Monday.
Flower Mound is one of several communities sitting on the gas-rich Barnett shale, a natural gas field that stretches beneath Tarrant, Denton and Wise counties.
The town has been working to address environmental and health concerns since last summer, when property owners approached town officials about drilling. The town has never had an oil or gas well, Riley said.
The Town Council issued a moratorium on permits in August and twice extended it to give staff members enough time to craft regulations.
The ordinance, among the area's strictest, was patterned after guidelines in Fort Worth, Denton and College Station. Permit seekers must submit a site plan. Up to $2,600 in fees will be imposed for permit applications, annual inspections and appeals of permit denials.
Those operating the wells must agree to repair roads damaged by vehicles used in drilling. The town will document the roads' conditions with video before drilling begins, Riley said.
The oil and gas wells also must be at least 750 feet from environmentally sensitive areas, such as wetlands, and 500 feet from property boundaries or public roads.
But the restrictions were not enough for some town officials. Planning and Zoning Commissioner Ellen Pourzan voted against the ordinance during a May 12 commission meeting. She said then that she opposes any drilling in town.
Robert Furst, who said he represents the owners of the Old WR Ranch, said at Monday's council meeting that he had spent the past 10 months in discussions with the town about drilling on the 1,300-acre property in western Flower Mound. He would not comment on the ordinance, saying he had not seen the document. He said he hopes to begin drilling in "a way that is constructive."
Flower Mound's new oil and gas drilling ordinance
* Wells must be at least 1,000 feet from parks, homes, public buildings and freshwater wells, and at least 500 feet from property boundaries and public streets.
* New charges include a $2,000 application fee, a $100 annual inspection fee, a $200 fee for changing a permit and a $300 fee for appealing a denied permit request.
* Drilling, construction and other operations cannot be louder than 78 decibels, similar to the sound of a vacuum cleaner from 300 feet away.
Copyright 2003 Star-Telegram, Inc.