Karnes County: Flowline rupture contaminates property [View all]

[TexasTowelie]

KARNES COUNTY – Adrian Opiela, Jr. has learned the hard way that having oilfield pipes buried beneath his property is risky business.

And it is a lesson he has learned twice.

Last week Opiela made a very unpleasant discovery on his ranch located about 8 miles north of Karnes City in rural Karnes County when he found a major saltwater oil spill that contaminated a large area of land, at least one large stock tank, and killed many large oak trees on the property.

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It was heartbreaking, Opiela said, to see the dead trees, and the mess that the contaminants left on his property. He said his sister was crying as she videotaped the pond and surrounding area knowing that two huge oak trees, one with a circumference of 130 inches and the other with a circumference of 161 inches are in danger and possibly might die as a result of the most recent spill. Opiela estimated the age of the trees to be greater than 150 years old and his family consider them irreplaceable.

The complete story at http://mysoutex.com/view/full_story_landing/22937057/article-Flowline-rupture-contaminates-property?instance=karnes_regional_news .

Photos: Joe Baker

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Like a thick coat of orange slime, waste fluids from an area oil well production coat a dry creek bed on property owned by Adrian Opiela, Jr. A feeder line carrying the fluids from a well to a disposal facility ruptured on the property located about 8 miles north of Karnes City, contaminating a large area of the property and filling a large stock pond with waste fluids.

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A huge oak tree that the Opiela family estimates is more than 150 years old stands in danger near the site of a feeder line rupture.

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White squares of absorbent material float in a ditch filled with waste fluids from an area drilling operation that spilled when a two-inch fiberglass feeder line ruptured on property.