Randall Greenfield

Columbia, MD

As a landowner in Burke County ND I am continually dumbfounded at how the oil industry without any public complaint or Game and Fish concerns continue to build large oil sites within native prairie, build roads across sensitive wetlands, invade wildlife habitat, create oil spills, illegally dump salt water, use immense quantities of aquifer water for fracking, improperly dispose of radioactive waste, create explosive oil fires, burn excess natural gas in open flares, create large dust clouds and kill birds and deer while transporting oil and salt water and even drill oil wells within 500 ft of occupied dwellings, as well as site oil pads anywhere they desire.

The oil industry continues to violate environmental regulations and damage the environment and yet the Game and Fish does not bother to get involved, after all this in the big government subsidized oil industry.

However should a wind farm energy company attempt to install wind turbines on these same native grasslands or even close to the same sensitive wetlands there is public outcry and the Game and Fish raises innumerable concerns and issues.

How can a clean energy project get such strong resistance from Game and Fish while the oil industry gets free rein to do immense environmental damage, wild habitat destruction and pollution?

My question is why does the general public and Game and Fish ignore the oil industry’s continual environmental damage, pollution, and roughshod disconcern for property rights and yet hold clean energy to a much higher standard?

Does anyone in the ND State Government have an adequate explanation for these seemingly upside down and confusing action? Do state legislators or the governor have any control over the irrational actions of the Game and Fish or are they even aware of the strange dichotomy Game and Fish enforcement.