Entry 08-31-08
Seep Update
Dead wildlife
There were two other dead bird incidents, but I didn't include them here because although they occurred within days of these critters dying, there is enough speculation that they may have succumbed to other causes as to be reserved. They, however, showed no overt signs of injury.
This small rabbit was found near our well. A week or
so later we found the opposite bank to be covered in biofilm. [08-17-08]
This dove was found floating in the fountain - the
water comes from the well. This may have been a West Nile death, however. We
just don' know.
New South Seep [08-22-08 and 08 28-08]
The week prior to the sampling effort agreed to by the COGCC, we discovered another area of seeping - at the opposite (North) end of our property. It was a small area of surface anomalies - maybe 2' X 3', but the vegetation in the nearby area is in significant decline. There was a small amount of biofilm in this area, but, if this area mimics what we've seen at the main site it appears that time has diminished what may have been visible. I believe this is all the same event - just different points of exit, suggesting it is far more widespread than we fist believed.
[08-22-08]
The photo above shows foam from the newly discovered seep site on the far south of our property. We saw big chunks of foam like this during the 2004 Schwartz blowout. EnCana uses surfactants (soap) in their drilling operations. We don't know what causes these chunks, but they persist in impacted areas. Surfactants are the only substances I know of that foam, but other chemicals in agitation could perhaps do so also. Since we had a couple of days of rain after this photo was taken on the 22nd, I worried that this foam chunk would be gone the morning the COGCC was supposed to come out to sample.
Strange precipitate - which could be algae or something else. It was this
kind of substance that decimated the plant matter at the main seep area
earlier. [08-22-08]
New South seep area [08-28-08] - still foamy even
after recent rains.
From black seep area [08-28-08]
strange round holes found in one of the sandstone
boulders which was decimated by corrosive-looking stuff - we suspect acid. [08-28-08]
Beaver Hootch and 2008 Main Seep
Area
Iron-reducing bacteria still lurks under the bank near the beaver hootch [08-28-08]
Meanwhile, across the creek on the
opposite bank, gas expresses from underground. in the same area where a
partially paralyzed frog was found the same day. click here to view video from
08-28-08 which
shows bubbling in creek bed with another, larger and apparently unimpaired
frog nearby.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayhBZWaXXBI
From area where paralyzed frog
was discovered and rescued
[08-28-08] and [08-30-08]
Dead crawdad near vent hole in creek bed blowing out
fine black particulate - near area where paralyzed frog was found.
[08-28-08]
Corrosive looking stuff across from 2008 main seep
beaver hootch - near area of paralyzed frog discovery. [08-30-08]
Area near waterfall - just maybe 20 feet upstream of 2008 main seep site and two ponded areas. [08-30-08]
I saw this soapy looking stuff that seeped out of the
ground in an area upstream of the main seep area (I'll call it the waterfall
site). I left the photo enlarged, because it is tough to tell where the
stuff is. It is in small whitish bubble patches to the middle left and
lower right of photo. The whole bank was like this in an area approximately
12' X 6'
Fine brown algae growth on boulders in creek upstream
of waterfall and soapy bank site. This kind of algae is pretty common in
West Divide Creek. [08-30-08] I would consider this pretty normal.
This, however, is another kind of algae I've never
seen in the creek before.... this is at the waterfall. I have been noticing
a proliferation of very bright green, almost neon-looking algae at areas
where there has been biofilm and iron-reducing bacteria present. This also
seems to proliferate where there is a little more oxygen saturation and sun
exposure in the water. Algae is not at all unusual in contamination
situations. Different kinds will proliferate from the opportunity to eat
whatever suddenly appears in the environment. Over time, enzymes and
microbes can even degrade polymers - synthetic and organic. But the sudden
eruption and relevant locations of this new green algae points very strongly
to the presence of a contaminant introduced into the creek. [08-30-08]
Here's a close up of the new algae [08-30-08] Look at
the pictures below to see how it appears in the creek bed.... it just grows
in small areas which happen to be near other anomalous bacterial growths.
Adjacent to Ponded Areas at 2008 Main Seep Site
Thin soapy-like foam persists adjacent to the ponded areas of 2008 main seep
site. [08-28-08]
After the COGCC instigated a confrontation and walked off the sampling project that was to have finally commenced on August 28th, 2008, we found two new areas of evident impacts on our property, and another larger area nearby which is strongly suspect. Observations from these areas follow.
Turkey Point [08-30-08]
The following pictures are from the Turkey Point beaver pond area. The beaver left the area around two and a half weeks ago and have not returned. I finally had an opportunity to go check out the area and found two impact areas. Beaver are especially sensitive to environmental changes - a lot like frogs. Their sudden absence after weeks of building two new dams and reinforcing a third raised serious suspicions, which were later confirmed. I saw a small fish jump in the pond, crane tracks on the bank and one frog a little downstream of the dam, but in an impacted area - that was it. No other wildlife that I could detect. No sandpipers or dippers. This is a strong indication that there is something very amiss with this environment. These birds feed on frogs and fish. If they are poisoned, the birds get poisoned. It's a food chain effect. The sensitive, attuned and able-bodied leave the area. Others eventually perish.
This is near an area that was found bubbling several
weeks ago. Here, iron-reducing bacteria is eeking out from beneath the bank. [08-30-08]
Black stuff (perhaps algae?) covers a rock [08-30-08]
Thick biofilm adjacent to the black stuff [08-30-08]. This is
just downstream from the Turkey Point beaver pond.
Area across from domestic well (on eastern bank)
The following are from an area nearly directly across from our domestic water well. This is also the area of the dead rabbit. Other areas like this - where heavy biofilm was present occupied a contiguous area maybe 6' X 20'.
[08-30-08]
Paralyzed Frog - "Spots"
We found a partially paralyzed frog in one impact area, but the COGCC environmental specialist refused to look at it. The frog, after 48 hours of rehabilitation, later recovered and was released back into West Divide Creek. Unfortunately, there are no areas which are not suspect, so we can only hope the frog is able to somehow steer clear of dangerous areas.
please see story below for picture and video links on paralyzed frog
Later, on the afternoon of 08-30-08, I walked the creek bed to the 2004 "main seep" area - which is still active - and noted an area of impact that runs nearly the full length of a neighbor's property. Pictures from that walkabout follow.
Iron-reducing bacteria and biofilm near a boulder.... [08-30-08]
Another area of the same.... [08-30-08]
Another area.... [08-30-08]
Another.... [08-30-08]
And another.... [08-30-08]
Here is a good picture of how the neon-like algae
grows... almost in a fan-flow pattern with whatever might be coming up into the
environment in that particular location - from groundwater or small
fractures which provide a path for natural gas or its associated
contaminants perhaps. [08-30-08]
Possible New Signs of Impacts a Mile Away
After the 08-30-08 walkabout, I notified our neighbors of my observations. One neighbor confided that in a conversation a week ago, another neighbor shared that they were experiencing anomalies in their otherwise excellent aquifer. They suggested to the neighbor that the water was staining their sink different colors.
I don't like to repeat hearsay, but in these kinds of situations, neighbors can be isolated from one another. Isolating people and information is an effective tactic favored by industry. One way to curtail community cohesion is to pit neighbor against neighbor. In our area, where industry has and continues to be such a force, this tactic has been successful, and not all neighbors speak to one another. So, considering the circumstances of this evolving seep situation, I'm going to discuss hearsay. However, I will note it for what it is, and should it prove later to be false - I will immediately correct it.
On a drive to record the condition of the access lane (EnCana is on the move again), we noted several dead patches of vegetation in fields near vigorous bubbling in a small pond used to recharge a domestic water shared by two neighbors. The dead patches may simply be the result of un-irrigated areas. However, they were small and dispersed among other healthy, tall-grass areas. The bubbling is another matter. And while it may be 'biogenic' - its very likely that it is being fed by a different methane source. This is near an area where a neighbor's water well was so full of methane after the Arbaney kick and the Schwartz blowout that they had to leave the premises. EnCana later bought that property. So, the sudden appearance of vigorous bubbling in this little pond may seem benign on its surface, but the surface is not the only concern. It's what is occurring underground that should be the primary focus.
These observations suggest even more strongly that the impacts we first encountered over a year ago and which were more comprehensively revealed on June 28th, are far larger and more sever than we first suspected.
[pictures from this video are unavailable as our equipment has changed, and still shots are low resolution. I will try to get new video of this phenomenon however, this week.]
The last time I saw this kind of vigorous bubbling
in a small pond was back during the 2004 seep on a neighbor's place probably
three miles away. The cedars around the pond had suddenly died as well as
those across the road - a whole hillside of them. Obviously, this pointed to
a methane seep. At the time, the COGCC was making some effort to determine
the extent of the 2004 seep in our area, and the infamous Amos area (well
blowout) - even further away was also under scrutiny. The neighbor's
property with the bubbling pond was the focus of big-time drilling (which
the owner shared a strong economic interest in). That particular pond was a stock
pond which was frequented by cattle. In the twenty years we've lived in the
area I'd never seen it bubble - let alone to such a degree. I don't doubt
that with decomposing manure it did not ever bubble, but it must have
been infrequent enough to not be of notice. I used to help this neighbor
pull calves and spent quite a bit of time around the area. When I notified
the COGCC of the sudden appearance of vigorous bubbling, the COGCC sampled
the pond and determined the gas was - again - biogenic. Around a week later the pond
was dozed in and the cedars burned in a fire. Strange coincidence you might
say.
