Evergreen Resources Inc. of Denver, Colo., which has just acquired the Pioneer coalbed methane prospect in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, was honored in Anchorage

Kristen Nelson

Evergreen Resources Inc. of Denver, Colo., which has just acquired the Pioneer coalbed methane prospect in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, was honored in Anchorage May 14 for its produced-water handling program at its large coalbed methane development in Colorado.

Evergreen received the independent/small company Chairman’s Stewardship Award from the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission for its work in making quality water available in the Raton Basin in Colorado.

Gerald Jacob, environmental supervisor for Evergreen, was in Anchorage to accept the award for the company and he told PNA the Raton Basin is a high desert where “water comes at a premium.”

When Evergreen started its coalbed methane operation in the Raton Basin, the land owners in the area wanted the water made available. Evergreen spent $250,000-$300,000 in 1998 sampling water from its coalbed wells and had it analyzed for 200-plus constituents. “So we know what’s in the water and what is not in the water,” Jacob said.

Evergreen’s program to provide water for stock is part of a larger program which includes providing drinking water and water for emergency services, all part of a much larger agreement on the regulation of coalbed methane water in southern Colorado. There are different water disposal options available and Evergreen uses a combination, including surface ponds, pits, surface discharge and injection wells, Jacob said. In the Raton Basin, the company works with the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission and the Colorado Department of Health on regulation and disposal of coalbed methane water.

Drinking, emergency water this year

“We’ve recently started working with some of the local emergency response people to try to figure out how to make it available for example for fire protection,” Jacob said. The Raton Basin is a rural area with very low population density and Evergreen has a fleet of water trucks and there are ponds where water can be stored for use in emergencies.

Evergreen is also funding a water supply project which will provide drinking water to local residents. This is an area, he said, where people drive 15 or 20 miles to town to get water. The Evergreen project would reduce travel time by providing clean drinking water much closer to home.

“It would be stored in tanks. It would be chlorinated, perfect municipal quality drinking water,” Jacob said. Evergreen is funding the initial construction and completion of the facility.