Oil development being held up at Fort Berthold
By ELOISE OGDEN, Regional Editor, eogden@minotdailynews.comArticle Photos
Fact Box
NUMBER OF RIGS IN U.S. UP BY 11
HOUSTON (AP) -The number of rigs actively exploring for oil and natural gas in the United States rose by 11 this week to 1,990.
A year ago, the rig count stood at 1,767.
Of the major oil- and gas-producing states, Louisiana added nine rigs, Oklahoma gained six and Texas picked up three.
North Dakota lost one while New Mexico and Wyoming each gained one. Alaska, Arkansas, California and Colorado were unchanged.
NEW TOWN Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., says he plans to meet with U.S. Department of Interior officials to clear up the matter of oil development being held up on the Fort Berthold Reservation because of the beaucratic delays.
Pomeroy, who met with Three Affiliated Tribes Chairman Marcus Wells Jr. on Friday, said Wells outlined to him the difficulties the tribe is having in getting wells drilled on the reservation, even though it's in the center of the Bakken play.
The Bakken Formation, which has an estimated reserves of nearly 4 billion barrels of oil, covers parts of North Dakota, Montana and Saskatchewan.
Pomeroy said he has pressed the Interior Department to add more staff resources to the Bureau of Indian Affairs Fort Berthold Agency Office.
"We've got to come up with some revisions that allow for expedited processing," Pomeroy said. He said it takes about a year and half for wells to get drilled on the reservation and only about a month off the reservation. He said the bureaucracy is slowing up the process for the tribe and causing the oil development to substantially lag on the reservation.
Oil development on the Fort Berthold Reservation must go through the BIA, a federal agency within the Interior Department, for its approval before any well can be drilled.
Much of the leasing has been completed on the reservation but less than a handful of wells have been drilled recently on the reservation for the tribe or individuals.
"We've got to make sure the tribe is not discriminated in the development of its natural resources," Pomeroy said. In his opinion, he said the slow bureaucracy-approach that the BIA requires of the Three Affiliated Tribes "is completely unfair and we need to change it."
While at New Town Friday Pomeroy also participated in a class on financial literacy sponsored by the Three Affiliated Tribes with presenters from the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians, at New Town High School.
He also met with officials at Fort Berthold Community College.
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mrhvana
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10-11-08 8:02 PM
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The owner still receives mineral rights, even if the land being drilled is horizonally drilled. Please don't be so ignorant.
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Wilkie
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10-11-08 3:55 PM
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I believe that there is also oil under all of the Turtle Mountain Tribal leased land and because of horizontal drilling our tribe is being ripped off. Grenora ND. and Montana
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