The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has released the results of an air quality sample it took on June 23, 2010, near a gas well facility owned by Williams Production located south of FM 1171 off of Scenic Road in Flower Mound.
According to the report, the benzene concentration of 0.11 parts per billion is below the state’s short-term and long-time air monitoring comparison values.
The TCEQ has said that background benzene readings for ambient air quality in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex are generally around 0.20 to 0.25 parts per billion.
There are two pipeline compressors at this site, a gas-lift compressor, 12 water collection tanks for produced water, 11 natural gas wellheads and three dehydration units that separate moisture from natural gas.
This is the seventh time that the air quality has been tested at or near Williams’ sites in Flower Mound this year. All seven tests have shown that the air quality is in compliance with TCEQ limits, according to company officials.
Despite the repeated testing, some residents are skeptical of the state agency’s ability to accurately monitor the air.
“The TCEQ and its industry-funded and orchestrated “air studies” have about as much credibility as BP’s safety procedures for deepwater drilling,” said Ladd Biro, a Flower Mound resident who opposes urban gas exploration.
“We need independent, unannounced, comprehensive studies conducted by outside experts, because the TCEQ and industry have proven they can’t be trusted,” Biro added.
See the report here.
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