Ohio had more than 1,400 oil and gas well incidents from 2018 to 2023 according to a records request analyzed by FracTracker Alliance. After reviewing the data, the group claims the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) did not accurately categorize many of the incidents and much of the data understated the severity the cases.
For example, in certain cases house explosions were not categorized as “major” or “severe.”
The volunteer group Save Ohio Parks made the records request to ODNR after an interview on WOSU in which Rob Brundrett with the Ohio Oil and Gas Association said there haven’t really been any real incidents environmentally.
Cincinnati Edition invited the Oil and Gas Association to join this discussion. They did not confirm but sent a statement attributed to Rob Brundrett.
"Ohio’s One Call system, while not perfect, has performed admirably since its inception. Those involved in the various sectors of Ohio’s oil and gas industry know that the One Call system works, and our members will continue to operate in a safe and responsible manner following all regulations to carry out their operations. Ohio has a robust system of laws and regulations to mitigate risk in the industry to protect all Ohioans.
As we previously stated when this argument was first presented last year, Ohio has nearly 63,000 wells operating seven days a week, 365 days per year. Ohio also has thousands of miles of gas pipelines operating all day every day. The wells and lines produce and transport affordable and reliable energy to Ohio’s citizens in all seasons to provide for the health and safety of families across the state. It is a testament to the safety and the rigorous standards of the industry that there have only been three major incidents since 2018, which means that only .004% of Ohio oil and gas operations have had a major reportable incident. I would put our industry’s safety numbers against any other manual industry in Ohio.
We are dismayed that those who rely every day on our energy continue to try and confuse Ohioans without presenting the full story on how the One Call system works and what the collected data truly represents.
Again, the oil and gas industry operates a transparent system with the state so that the public can have a better understanding of how the industry works with government to mitigate risk to health and the environment. We would be interested to know of any other industry in Ohio that is as transparent regarding 'incident' reporting whether it was appropriate or not, as calls are sometimes either misreported or false alarms.
Our industry routinely leads in safety and environmental innovations, and this so-called report does nothing to dissuade that fact or the fact that the vast majority of upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors operate each and every day without issue."
We also invited the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to join the show, they declined.
Guests:
- Gwen Klenke, midwest program coordinator, FracTracker Alliance
- Nathan Johnson, senior attorney for lands and water, Ohio Environmental Council & Ohio Environmental Council Action Fund
- Silverio Caggiano, member of the board of directors, Buckeye Environmental Network, former battalion chief, Youngstown Fire Department
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