Spills Related to Oil and Gas Declined in New Mexico in 2019
Oil- and gas-related spills were down in New Mexico last year. But the amount of spilled industry wastewater and released natural gas was on the rise.
In 2019, oil and gas companies in New Mexico reported 1,409 incidents, down from 1,523 spills in 2018. The amount of spilled produced water was about 4.2 million gallons in 2019, up from about 3.7 million gallons in 2018, according to an analysis of state data by the Center for Western Priorities.
Companies released more than 811 million cubic feet of natural gas, up from 247 million cubic feet in 2018.
Oil and gas companies must report produced water and crude oil spills more than 5 barrels (about 210 gallons) to New Mexico’s Oil Conservation Division of the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department.
Produced water is salty wastewater that surfaces along with oil or natural gas. The mixture can contain natural chemicals and additives used in fracking to prevent pipe corrosion and make oil recovery more efficient.
“Companies have 15 days to report to us, but once they find a spill or a release they have to take immediate action to contain it and remediate that spill,” said Adrienne Sandoval, Oil Conservation Division director. “Once an incident happens, they propose a remediation plan if they weren’t able to recover all that was spilled. When they complete remediation, they report to us, and we confirm that they did what they said they were going to.”
Companies also report large releases of natural gas, which contains methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Eddy and Lea counties in southeast New Mexico had 87% of last year’s reported spills and releases.
“Our analysis shows the continued impact of drilling on our land, water and communities,” said Jesse Prentice-Dunn, the Center’s policy director. “With a 228% increase in the reported volume of methane released in New Mexico, there is clearly a need for sustained enforcement of public health and environmental safeguards throughout the drilling process.”
In 2019, the state Legislature restored the Oil Conservation Division’s authority to enforce fines against oil and natural gas companies that pollute air and water. That rule change went into effect last week.
Sandoval said the rule is “another tool to ensure compliance and level the playing field” for energy operators. The agency can levy penalties for any violation of New Mexico’s Oil and Gas Act, including environmental, reporting and financial assurance obligations.
The amount of crude oil spilled went down from more than 670,000 gallons in 2018 to about 626,000 gallons in 2019. For every barrel of oil produced, about four barrels of produced water surface. That water is recycled throughout the oil field and transported by trucks and pipelines. New Mexico’s oil production is skyrocketing, which means more produced water is being transported throughout the southeast corner of the state.
“There is a lot of business in produced water, so we’re making sure we regulate that and ensure all operators are reporting spills, operating responsibly, and playing by the same rules,” Sandoval said.
When a major spill impacts water or public health, the company must notify OCD within 24 hours. Incident reports include spill causes. Equipment failure accounted for the largest percentage of last year’s spills and releases.
As of Friday, about 180 spills or leaks of produced water, crude oil and natural gas had been reported to the state in 2020 by oil and gas companies. Spill data is publicly available at www.emnrd.state.nm.us/OCD/ and clicking on the statistics tab.