BISMARCK, N.D. - With the state's recent decision to relax methane-flaring regulations and the federal government deferring to states, North Dakota regulations are moving away from the rest of the country.

The North Dakota Industrial Commission voted to stay on its current track and increase gas-capture goals from 85 percent to 88 percent in January, but has added wiggle room for oil and gas producers to meet that goal. The industry has failed to meet the current capture goal five months in a row.

With the Bureau of Land Management's decision to rescind Obama-era flaring rules, Joel Minor, senior associate attorney with Earthjustice, said it's the state's prerogative to come up with its own guidelines.

"Those state flaring standards in North Dakota are really the only applicable standards for flaring right now," he said, "because the Bureau of Land Management has said that complying with the state flaring standards counts as complying with the federal standards as well."

Standards vary greatly between states and tribes. Earthjustice has filed a lawsuit on behalf of such groups as the Western Organizations of Resource Councils and Fort Berthold POWER against BLM for rescinding the methane-flaring rules. The Interior Department has said the Obama-era regulations were too burdensome on the industry.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also has proposed scaling back methane regulations for new operations on private lands. In November, the agency held a single public meeting on the proposal in Denver, attracting people from across the country, including Lisa Deville, president of Fort Berthold POWER in western North Dakota. Deville said she and her husband have felt the health effects from nearby flaring operations and traveled to Colorado to tell their story.

"I'm always anxious to do these things," she said. "So, whether the U.S. government does anything about it, I just put pressure on them to have them understand what I have to live with."

The proposal is open for public comment until Dec. 17.

North Dakota operators flared nearly 460 million cubic feet of natural gas per day in September - a record amount.

It doesn't have to be this way, said Mark Trechock, retired director of the Dakota Resource Council, adding that other states have done a better job of reining this in, such as Alaska, where flaring was prohibited in 1971.

"It's a real stark contrast between what Alaska has done, which is very thoughtful and a sensible approach," he said, "whereas North Dakota, it seems like the industry is running state policy on this."


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A round of public testimony wrapped up this week as part of renewed efforts by a company seeking permit approval in North Dakota for an underground pipeline carrying carbon emissions. Economic benefits were again touted but the plan still has opponents.

Last year, North Dakota's Public Service Commission denied a permit request from Summit Carbon Solutions, which wants to build a maze of pipelines in several Midwestern states. Emissions from ethanol plants would be captured for underground storage in North Dakota.

Skott Skokos, executive director of the Dakota Resource Council, said they remain unconvinced it would be a worthwhile project.

"It felt like déjà vu," Skokos observed. "I don't think Summit did anything to relax the concerns of the public."

Company officials have submitted a new application with a revised route as they try to ease concerns about safety and landowner rights. During comment periods, Summit leaders and other speakers discussed how the project would provide economic boosts, including corn prices. However, skeptics restated their concerns about potential ruptures and lasting negative effects on the landscape.

Skokos pointed out large carbon-capture projects like these have yet to prove themselves, noting smaller initiatives are not as likely to rile up opponents. He pointed to the Red Trail ethanol plant in North Dakota.

"They're storing it, basically, almost on-site, next to the facility and they're not affecting a bunch of landowners in the process," Skokos emphasized.

The Summit regulatory case has two upcoming public hearings in North Dakota, one scheduled for May 24 and the other on June 4. The company has run into similar opposition and permitting headwinds in other states, including South Dakota.

Leaders concerned about pollution and climate change are raising awareness about a ballot measure this fall on whether the state should mandate buffer zones around new oil and gas wells.

Voters will be asked to uphold or revoke Senate Bill 1173, which would require a 3,200-foot setback around any new well near schools, neighborhoods and hospitals.

Meghan Sahli-Wells, former mayor of Culver City and a leader with the group Elected Officials to Protect America, fought to phase out the Inglewood oil field and said no community should be a sacrifice zone.

"A study from Harvard found that in California, 34,000 people died in 2018, prematurely, from fossil fuel air pollution," Sahli-Wells pointed out. "These figures are three times higher than other studies."

The Stop the Energy Shutdown campaign, supported by the California Independent Petroleum Association, opposes the setback rule, arguing it could constrict local supply and cost jobs in the industry. A court put the bill on hold pending the outcome of the November election. A "yes" vote would keep the setbacks. A "no" vote would rescind them.

Clean energy advocates are also speaking out against companies operating older low-producing wells rather than pay to shut them down and seal them up properly.

Ahmad Zahra, a city council member in Fullerton, said Assembly Bill 2716 would incentivize their closure by charging companies $10,000 a day to operate so-called "stripper wells."

"We have over 40,000 oil wells currently sitting orphaned or idle, leaking methane and volatile organic compounds into the air, water and soil," Zahra emphasized.

Other states are following California's lead. Rep. Debbie Sariñana, D-Albuquerque, New Mexico, is sponsoring a bill to require setbacks near sensitive locations since more than 32,000 children in the state attend school within a mile of an oil and gas extraction site.

"Over 80 schools in northwestern New Mexico - the San Juan Basin and southeastern New Mexico, the Permian Basin - are within one mile of an oil and gas well," Sariñana noted. "Some schools are surrounded by dozens and even hundreds of wells within a single mile."

The construction of more solar farms in the U.S. has been contentious but a new survey shows their size makes a difference in whether solar projects are favored by neighbors.

South Dakota's largest solar installation, the Wild Springs project in New Underwood, began operations in March and covers more than 1.5 square miles. The survey showed projects under 100 megawatts are generally favored by neighbors, while larger ones like Wild Springs are unpopular.

Kristi Pritzkau, finance officer for the City of New Underwood, said the construction traffic was tough on the town of just over 600 but the project's builder, National Grid Renewables, is giving back to the community.

"They had to use our well, so they paid for the water, and they paid for a new pump for it, too," Pritzkau pointed out. "They've been really great with the city."

Prtizkau noted the company donated to the town's pool and Lions Club and has created a school scholarship program, all part of the more than $500,000 of charitable giving it has promised in the project's first 20 years of operation. It is also expected to bring in $12 million of tax revenue to the county in the same time frame.

Sioux Falls-based Missouri River Energy Services has plans to build a new solar project near Brookings and build a transmission line from South Dakota into Minnesota.

Tim Blodgett, vice president of member services and communications for the company, said federal grant programs and tax credits provide incentives and South Dakota produces more energy than it can use.

"With the development of more wind, the development of solar, there's a lot planned right now to get these resources out of this area," Blodgett explained. "Into Minneapolis and other places where there's larger demand for the energy."

Currently, more than half the state's power generation comes from wind, followed by hydropower.


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