In April, a group representing 350 companies working in North Dakota’s booming oil industry announced a new program to clean up the human waste, old tires and other trash littering the state’s highways.
State and national media reported in March that oil patch communities were struggling to combat the growing trash problem that included urine-filled jugs tossed by truckers along roadsides.
Alexis Brinkman, government relations manager for the North Dakota Petroleum Council, said NDPC’s new Oil Can! Pick up the Patch! program aims to address the growing concern over littering and trash accumulation in North Dakota by encouraging the oil industry and communities to work together to create a “no litter” culture.
NDPC was unanimous in its support for the cleanup initiative, and members are being encouraged to establish long-term programs, not just one-time pickups, Brinkman said.
“Most of the challenges — roads and houses for example — that western North Dakota is facing take time. Trash is something we feel we can take care of immediately.”
The NDPC is encouraging companies involved with the oil industry to promote cleanliness and proper litter disposal by:
• including proper trash disposal in employee training;
• making a staff person responsible for cleaning work areas;
• reminding crew not to litter during daily briefings and including trash bags in company vehicles;
• taking part in statewide efforts like Adopt-A-Highway and Keep North Dakota Clean; and
• scheduling cleanup days in their local communities.
Marathon prime example
Brinkman said Marathon Oil, headquartered in Dickinson, is a prime example of industry participation in the Pick up the Patch! program.
On April 18, approximately 100 volunteers participated in a Marathon-led cleanup day to pick up trash along North Dakota Highway 22 from the Marathon offices, three miles north of Dickinson, south into town.
Terry Kovacevich, asset manager for Bakken project for Marathon Oil, said the company adopted Highway 22 three years ago and organizes cleanup days two or three times a year.
“We ask all of our employees to help with these cleanup days,” Kovacevich said. “We want to keep our roads and communities litter-free just like everyone else. These are our communities, too.”
Some 135 people pitched in April 21 to pick up refuse along 15 miles of road in the Watford City area, organizer Karen Holte said. Volunteers filled about 100 big garbage bags of trash per mile and three heaping truckloads of semi tires, but by April 24, evidence of their effort was beginning to fade.
“We’re only three days in, and there already is fresh trash in the ditches,” Holte said. “It’s ridiculous.”
Pick up the Patch! is a permanent Oil Can! program to help combat litter in the Oil Patch communities. There are already several industry-led cleanup events scheduled as a result of the campaign, and several more will be added in the coming months, per NDPC’s press release. “Our companies have been incredibly responsive,” Brinkman said. “Both immediate cleanup efforts and long-term prevention plans are being implemented. It’s exactly what we’d hoped for.”
Open to all organizations involved with the petroleum industry, the Oil Can! program was created by NDPC to give the industry “the opportunity to gather information from stakeholders through town hall meetings, websites, surveys and mailings,” so the industry could gain a better “understanding of issues and concerns and can respond to stakeholders in a timely manner,” the April 18 press release said.
