American Oil and Gas Reporter - June 2017 - 41

SpecialReport: Pad Operations
total depth of the well to the surface, creating a second cement and steel barrier
across any freshwater aquifers," Peterson
reports.
All water runoff from well sites is
guided to sump areas to be cleaned and
removed as necessary to eliminate any
potential negative consequences to the
surface location or neighboring surface
environments. "We also design our locations with spill containment in mind. We
ensure the containment of any potential
spills using ground barriers and berms,"
Peterson continues.
Accommodating trucks traveling to
and from well sites is a particular challenge
in urban areas, especially during times
of day when streets are already congested
with stop-and-go traffic. To alleviate disruptions, Peterson says SRC Energy takes
a multifaceted approach to managing
truck routing at all its well locations.
"During the drilling phase, access
routes are coordinated with the county
and local municipalities to ensure safe
travel to and from the location. We also
schedule deliveries to avoid high traffic
times, busy intersections and night operations as much possible," he details.
"During the completion stage, we deliver
water to location by pipeline and use
pipelines to transport oil, gas and produced
water from the wellsite throughout the
life of the well. Together, these measures

dramatically reduce truck traffic in our
operations."
SRC Energy expresses plans to complete at least 104 wells by year's end. To
reduce exposure to silica dust generated
by handling frac sand, Peterson says the
company uses a state-of-the-art, container-based proppant delivery system that
does not require pneumatics nor conveyors,
and reduces silica dust below the permissible exposure limit defined by U.S.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards. "The system also reduces noise and the number of engines,"
he adds.
Key To Success

The key to SRC Energy's success in
the D-J Basin, according to Peterson, is
its dedication to go beyond regulatory
compliance to ensure that the company
always acts as a good neighbor and a
careful environmental steward.
"We have developed and implemented
strict in-house safety and environmental
standards. These companywide standards
are part of our culture and the service
providers we use are held to similar standards in order to work for us," he relates.
"We are actively involved in communicating with and providing specific site
tours and presentations with first responders and local government officials."
It all starts with a mindset of being a

Temporary 32-foot sound walls enclose SRC Energy Inc.'s Evans
pad in the D-J Basin, dramatically reducing noise and light output
from wellsite operations. The two rigs ﬁnished drilling 22 horizontal wells on the pad last year, including 13 'long-length' laterals averaging 10,000 feet and nine 'extended-length' laterals averaging
12,000 feet. Ahead of the horizontal drilling program, SRC plugged
27 legacy vertical wells on the Evans spacing unit and reclaimed

valuable partner with local communities
and building an active, local presence.
"Be present and responsive to concerns
of the citizens and municipalities that
are impacted by your operations," Peterson
advises. "Be as proactive as possible in
understanding how your operations will
impact an area and make plans to mitigate
that impact, or at least open a dialogue
and come to some level of agreement in
advance.
"We regularly attend community meetings and maintain a strong and active relationship with the local governing bodies,"
he continues. "We also have lots of 'boots
on the ground' with employees that live
in and around Greeley and can respond
quickly to stakeholder concerns."
The day-to-day interactions of the
SRC Energy employees who live in the
communities in which the company operates represent the most crucial interface
with local citizens, he emphasizes. "Our
employees act as ambassadors for SRC,
providing an open dialogue. Our practices
of open and active communication with
local municipalities, and quickly addressing any community concerns, can only
lead to stronger relationships," Peterson
acknowledges. "We feel the doors have
been open to SRC Energy and it is up to
us to keep them open.
"Therein lies the mutual economic
benefits, not only to SRC from continuing

the associated surface acreage for return to homeowners' associations and surface owners. The company's other efforts to be a
good neighbor include air and water quality monitoring, noise and
light suppression, technologies to reduce silica dust, operational
practices to minimize truck traffic, and automated systems to provide around-the-clock remote monitoring.

JUNE 2017 41

American Oil and Gas Reporter - June 2017

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