North Dakota suffers two new oil spills

Two oil spills were reported over the weekend (June 6th) in the US state of North Dakota. The state is the second largest producer of crude oil in the US and has been subjected to a number of oil spills in recent months, creating concerns over current practice when it comes to oil extraction.

The larger of the two spills occurred just outside of New Town in Mountrail County, with around 690 barrels of crude oil being released from an underground pipeline. According to the North Dakota Department of Health, the oil leaked at an oil gathering site at a well that is operated by EOG Resources.

It is not yet known what caused the pipeline, which is owned by Bridger Pipeline, to rupture. The spill was discovered on Friday June 6th and operations began to clean up the oil once it was discovered. An investigation will look at possible causes to the break in the line once cleanup operations are complete. 

By Saturday (June 7th) around 640 barrels of oil had been recovered, said the Health Department, with most of the cleanup having been completed. 

A separate oil leak also occurred in North Dakota, causing a spill of around 300 barrels of oil. The second and unrelated incident occurred at a pipeline trenching operation outside of Alexander.

According to the Health Department, damage was caused to the Belle Fourche Pipeline by the trenching operations, which resulted in the release of oil. Luckily, the majority of the spilled oil remained in the trench, stopping any contamination from spreading and meaning that the oil affected no water sources.

The 300 barrels of crude oil have now been recovered, according to officials, and berms have been installed to contain any remaining oil in case of rain.

The state of North Dakota produces around one million barrels of crude oil every day, taking second place behind Texas in the list of oil-producing states. However, it has been the site of several spills, ranging from small to incredibly large. This increase in spills has caused many to suggest that current regulations and practices are not doing enough to avoid the environmental damage that oil leaks create.