By the OGJ Online Staff
HOUSTON, Nov. 27 -- As early as next week, the Fort Worth, Tex., city council could consider a proposed ordinance to permit drilling for natural gas within the city limits, municipal officials told OGJ Online Tuesday.
The "one part still to work on" is the required distance between a well site and residential property, said municipal spokesman Pat Svancina with the Fort Worth city manager's office. "Other cities have established a distance of 1,000 ft or so. We're looking at the same distance, with a provision that would permit applications for exceptions."
The proposed ordinance was prompted by the prolific Barnett Shale that underlies much of the city and surrounding area.
"A number of gas wells have been drilled north of Fort Worth and we're annexing in that area. We've had five or six cases in the last year where different companies have wanted to drill inside of Fort Worth," Svancina said.
Under current municipal ordinances for most of the city's residential areas, that would require a zoning change to industrial use -- something that neither the producers nor the residents want.
The proposed ordinance would create a permitting process to allow citywide drilling with some restrictions, said industry and municipal officials.
The city manager would appoint an oil and gas inspector to oversee the permitting process and to ensure that drillers and producers comply with the rules. Operators would submit permit applications, which the inspector would review for compliance before issuing or denying the permit request.
The city council would review requests and conduct public hearings only if the application failed to meet distance requirements from surrounding homes or other buildings, such as hospitals or schools, or if an applicant were to appeal the inspector's decision.
Mitchell Energy & Development Corp., Houston, is the biggest producer of gas from the Barnett Shale, although it has not yet applied to drill within Fort Worth city limits. However, company officials have followed closely the development of the proposed ordinance.
"They're moving along professionally. It's a fair thing," said a company representative who attended a public hearing on the proposed ordinance Monday night in Fort Worth.