Ok, just for the sake of a broad discussion.
What % of an AFE on a typical horizontal well is allocated to environmental compliance??
Is that amount unreasonable?
Should operators have to do site remediation after they plug a well and return the land to its pristine original state or would you prefer to see thousands of old pads in your public lands covered with rusting tank batteries?
Should they even be forced to plug a well after they abandon it? Why not just abandon it outright when it’s not breaking even.
Should they be forced to clean up salt water spills?
Should they be monitored to make sure they don’t poison the downstream water supply?
Should BP have been held financially responsible for the deep water horizon spill, after it impacted not only the fisheries, but the restaurants, hotels, and other businesses?
Should the drillers be allowed to just dump their fracking water or salt water, out on the roads to and from the wells?
Should operators be allowed to run thousands of miles of roads across pristine lands as they see fit?
Should operators be required to even have mufflers on their equipment or noise and light abatement on their rigs?
Yes, there are rules to being in any type of business. Some people think that having to comply with any environmental or safety concerns is horribly burdensome. But do we want to live in a society akin to an Upton Sinclair novel where the robber barons and corporations do what they want without oversight or accountability?
I used to buy, overhaul, and sell CF6 jumbo jet engines. You should have seen the regulatory compliance hoops we jumped through. Parts were tracked by hour and some critical parts were cycle tracked (1flight). Paperwork red tape and borescoping were constant. Maintenance schedules were always followed. And you know what, when I flew with my family on vacation it made me feel a whole lot better that I knew all the engines were being properly maintained in accordance with those pesky and burdensome rules.
Like I said, we were drilling plenty of wells at $70 per barrel. In fact we were a net exporter of the oil. I see no reason to lower standards.
Last point, inflation adjusted prices for decades have shown gas prices to run about $4.10 - $4.20 year in and year out. I think gas is running around $3.25 right now so exactly how is the consumer getting a raw deal??
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