The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1935-04-11
BY VINCENT LYONS
Times Financial Editor

Much ado has been made Of the
vsnton waste Of gas in the Texas
Panhandle field. The writer, still
able 10 hear the roar Of gas spout
ing into the air at the rate Of
about 90 100000 cubic feet daily
from single plant, can vouch for
the fact that the hue and cry does
not represent idle prattle.
Originally the gas reserve in the
field was estimated at a little more
than IS trillion cubic feet Today
the supply is calculated 10 be around
u trilh0n cublt feet. A large pro-
portion which has been recovered
TO date constitutes gas that has
been dissipated 70 fulfill selfish
ends.
The chief contributions TO this
reckless waste, most oil and gas
people agree, are the operators of
stripping plants. A stripping plant
extracts the gas from the ground,
runs it through various departments,
collects One-third Of natural gaso-
line for every 1000 cubic feet Of
natural gas, sends the gas itself
through pipes and blows it into the
air.
Wasted by Stripping Plants
These stripping plans, and there
are quite a few of them, shoot IN
the air daily natural gas equivalent
to the entire domestic and CONNER
ciaI consumption of the United
States. An idea Of what this waste
amounts to in round figures may be
had by pointing out that the daily
domestic and commercial consump-
ton at present is a little more than
one billion cubic feet.
Large oil and gas companies gen.
orally have been deploring the men
ace of the stripping plan by news
paper advertising and by invective.
one oil company official declared
that the natural gas production
Nealized through stripping operations
ais Il child born of rape"
Within the last fortnight the sit
uation has undergone some change.
A bill was unanimously passed by
the lower branch Of the Texas Legis-
lature which provides for the elm
ination Of stripping operations Early
enactment of the measure into law
will write fms to one of Texas
appalling chapters.
Four other Prime Uses
In addition to the WaSteful use,
via shippers. there are four other
prime uses for natural gas, as fol-
lows:
l. Pipe line transportation for do
nestle and industrial purposes.
> Casinghead gasoline manufaC-
ture which means extracting gaso-
line from the gas which comes to
the surface when an oil well is
drilled
3. Carbon black manufacture to
obtain its product
4. Production of oil which re-
quires the gas as a motlvating force
and an aid to lifting the oil.
Drilled for Oil
Probably one of the reasons for
the outcropping of the gas waste
was the fact that many individuals
had drilled wells in the Texas PAN
handle with the idea Of getting 1il
After eXpending considerable time
and money they discovered. when
the strike was made. that they had
a gas rather than an oil well. This
put them in a distressed position,
as they had no means OF getting
the product to market.
Within a few months quite a few
other persons found themselves in
the same position. Consequently,
the aggregate investment of these
persons was built up to rather siza-
bic proportions. After Clamoring
for relief they finally received it
through the legitimizing of strip
ping plants. Such plants paid less
than would the pipe line companies,
but any figure was better than hav-
ing the we'll remain idle
1t was not realized at the outset
that this ogre of waste would reach
the proportions which it did.
The concern of the large com
panies over the popping-off of the
gas was justified by the huge invest
ment they had made in the natural
gas industry. 1t has been calculated
that pipe line companies alone have
spent S2.50OO00 900. These compa-
MES have $1,000 miles of mains and
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