Lawsuit filed over permits for oil and helium development

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In September of last year, the BLM approved the lease permits of 4,200 acres of public lands for oil and gas extraction in Arizona’s Little Colorado River Basin without any new environmental review, allowing for land near Woodruff and the Petrified Forest National Park to be explored for oil and helium deposits.

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The lawsuit filed last week on behalf of The Center for Biological Diversity, the Sierra Club and WildEarth Guardians in U.S. District Court alleges that the BLM issued the permits without adequately analyzing the impacts that drilling could have on local communities, aquifers, public land and animals.

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According to information by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, helium gas extraction in northeastern Arizona started in the late 1950s and continued into the early 1970s but stopped because of reservoir depletion and/or lower market prices. Recently the market demand has increased, once again making those resources viable.

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According to information by the Center for Biological Diversity, companies are targeting the Little Colorado River Valley for helium, oil and gas development because of rising helium prices.

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The environmental group claims that a recent state permit for helium fracking on nearby lands authorized acid “stimulation” on about 80 wells. During that process it is reported that acid and other chemicals will be injected into rock layers within 150 feet of the Coconino aquifer, a critical regional water source. Acid fracturing, as it’s also called, often uses higher concentrations of acid and other dangerous chemicals than conventional hydraulic fracking.

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A request for comment by the Center for Biological Diversity was not received as of press time.

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