Weld County oil spills for May 9

Information is based on Form 19, which operators must fill out detailing the leakage/spill events. Any spill release that may impact waters of the state must be reported as soon as practical. Spills and leaks typically are found during routine maintenance on existing wells, though some actual "spills" do occur among the 17,000-plus wells in the county.

» NOBLE ENERGY INC reported May 5 a historical tank battery spill near Weld County Road 388 and 59, about 7 miles northeast of Kersey. An unknown amount of oil, condensate and produced water spilled. Lab analysis indicated a historical release at the decommissioned tank battery. One soil sample exceeded COGCC standards for naphthalene, total petroleum hydrocarbons, 1-methylnaphthalene and 2-methylnaphthalene.

» BONANZA CREEK ENERGY OPERATING COMPANY LLC reported May 3 a historical tank battery spill near Weld 89 and 52, about 20 miles northwest of Wiggins. An unknown amount of oil, condensate and produced water spilled. Historical impacts were found while exposing a dump line for rerouting. The location is within a proposed 2023 Mule Deer Severe Winter Range/Winter Concentration Area.

» PDC ENERGY INC reported May 1 a historical spill near Weld 55 and 36, about 2 miles northeast of Kersey. An unknown amount of oil and produced water spilled. A historic release was found during facility abandonment.

» NICKEL ROAD OPERATING LLC reported April 28 a recent spill near Colo.14 and Weld 43, about 4 miles east of Ault. Approximately 2 barrels of produced water spilled outside of the containment. A third-party hauler was pulling a produced water load from the tanks when a hose fitting broke. The contaminated soil was dug out with a backhoe before being properly disposed. The soil was replaced with a new road base. The spill was contained.

» HIGHPOINT OPERATING CORPORATION reported April 25 a recent tank battery spill near Weld 89 and 52, about 19 miles northwest of Wiggins. An unknown amount of oil, condensate and produced water spilled. A compromised line at the separator caused an unknown volume of fluid to be released to the ground and subsurface. The line was immediately locked out and the spill was contained entirely on the pad. Impacted soil will be removed and hauled to an approved COGCC disposal facility. Confirmation soil samples will be collected.

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