The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1913-05-14
MILLIONS WASTED YEARLY.
In the Natural Gas Industry, According
to Opinion of Experts.

; Washington, D. C.. MAY l4.-0il ex
Iperts OF the United States bureau o
mines, who have been investigating TIN
natural gas industry have reported t,
Joseph A. Holmes the director. that mil
lions OF dollars worth OF this most per
feet fuel is being wasted each year il
1.-THE United States.
The history OF the natural gas in.
Idustry is an appalling record OF incred-
Iible waste" says Ralph Arnold and Fred.
|erick G. Clapp, the experts, in their re.
port made public to-day. They refer to
the waste in Oklahoma, Louisiana and
iCalforna as being notorious.
In 0klaroma. one hundred million en-
bic feet of gas is escaping into the air
every twenty-four hours. This has a
value OF $4,000 day or S7,300,000 a
tycar. This waste is also equal to one
and one-quarter tons OF the best bitu-
mnous coal.
The waste in Louisiana is estimated
at seyentv-hye million cubic feet OF gas
daily. valued at $4,000 for each day, or
S. AIS 600 for the year. This waste Of
gas is equivalent to nearly one million
tons Of coal. II is pointed out by the
experts that this waste Is especially ag
gravating because OF the fact that Louis-
lana does not have any coal resources
within her boundaries. and that while
the state is allowing its supply OF gas
to escape in the air, the citizens are pay
ing for coal that has to be transported
some distance.
There were three principal wells in
the Caddo field from which the greater
part of the waste occurred" says Mr..
Arnold. Two Of these have been closed
by the owners, thus proving that closure
is feasible. No attempt has been made
to close the other. and when visited by
Mr.. Clapp in February, 1912, it con
sisted of crater perhaps an acre in ex
tent in the center Of which the gas was
forcing a geyserlike mass of mud and
water to height of twenty or thirty
feet. During much of the time this well |
is burning. The gas from this well |
has been going TO waste for three years. |
Two other wells having an estimated |
volume OF twenty to thirty million cubic I
feet per day blew out and burned for one |
or two years. In the Caddo field at least /
400000,000 cubic feet of gas has at /
certain times been wasted daily, prac-
tically all the waste being preventable.
"ln certain of the southern California
fields, the gas that accompanies the oil
; exceedingly rich in gasoline, but up
% a short time ago, practically all this
gas, with the exception of some used To-
ally for fuel, went to waste. As it has
'een found that at some wells the value
II the recoverable gasoline in the gas
S worth as much as twenty per cent of
he oil produced from the same well,
{ is not extravagant to estimate the
oss of gasoiine-the most desired con
tituent OF the product--in the wasted
as of California at ten per cent. OF the :
alue of the oil produced in the south
I'm California fields up to 1912. or a clear
raste of about S3000,000 or S4.0000OO J
he value of the wasted gases carrying
minor amounts of gasoline, but useful
or fuel purposes. will bring the total
,ss up to fully five per cent. OF the value
the total oil produced in the state, or
s 100000
Mr.. Arnold quotes l. c. White. state
eologist Of West Virginia, as authority
Dr. the statement that from one well :
! eastern Kentucky there poured a
tream of gas for period of twenty
ears without any attempt to shut il in =
! utilize it. the amount of which il has = :
zen figured was worth at current prices =
ore than $3,O0O.OO0. U
Mr.. Arnold declares that there was. !
Ears ago. great waste in Ohio. Pennsyl- v
mia, Indiana and West Virginia, but 8
has been stopped through the bust al
,ss-like methods of the larger compan-
: and the efficient state legislation. v
The oil experts Of the bureau offer =
number of methods whereby the gas :.
sy be saved for future use and urge u
,on the industry and the states in y
lived the necessity for quick action II % ID
? gas fields are to be OF service in the "a
ture. Already a number Of fields have ~
come exhausted through waste and ke
hers are beginning to decline in pro- ~
ction. ~