Road use near wells concerns Trumbull engineer

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Smith

By Ed Runyan

runyan@vindy.com

WARREN

Recent discussions between the Trumbull County Engineer’s Office and a company making plans to drill a gas well in the county have exposed some road-use issues that need to be addressed, Engineer Randy Smith says.

The county commissioners recently approved a road-use and management agreement they hope will be used for every Utica gas well drilled in the county. Such wells are called horizontal wells and involve the use of hydraulic fracturing.

The agreement spells out the responsibilities of the driller for preparing, maintaining and repairing roads, culverts and bridges they are using.

But now Smith says it’s apparent that something more needs to be in place because the agreement may not be enough in every case to guarantee that drillers return the road to the same condition it was in when work started.

Smith said he was concerned when he learned that one driller doesn’t plan to make any improvements to the roads near a horizontal well it would like to drill. Furthermore, the company doesn’t believe the truck traffic will cause any damage to the roads, Smith said.

That is a “red flag” in Smith’s mind, he said, because of the large amount of truck traffic that is required for such a well.

In truth, Trumbull County doesn’t have the authority to require the company to make improvements to the road before it starts its work or to require the company to carry out a scientific evaluation of the road in advance of drilling operations. All the county can do is require the company to carry $1 million in liability insurance, purchase a $50,000 performance bond and pay a $20 permit fee, Smith said.

Those requirements were written for the shallow gas wells that have been common in the county for many years, Smith said.

For Utica wells, there is potential for much more truck traffic and much more damage to the roads and bridges, Smith said.

So he’s considering a plan to ask the county commissioners in a couple of weeks to require drilling companies to buy a $100,000 performance bond if doing preventive work and a bond of $350,000 per mile of road used if not doing preventive work.

Additional bond amounts might be necessary if bridges and other structures are involved, Smith added.

Smith discussed the idea of performance bonds Tuesday with the Trumbull County Planning Commission at its monthly meeting. The planning commission consists of staff and a volunteer board that oversees planning, grant writing, housing, land-use and economic-development issues.

Despite the extra protection provided by a performance bond, it still doesn’t guarantee performance, Smith cautioned. A bond helps, but enforcing one can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees, he said.

Smith says he’s also proposing that the county employ someone to monitor and oversee shale-related road-use issues because most townships don’t have the personnel to do that. The townships and villages would help pay for the position, he said.

Ten townships and a village already have expressed an interest in helping to fund the position, Smith said.