Oil, Gas Mapping Draws Residents’ Attention
Morgantown Dominion Post
17 February 2011
By Alex Lang
Residents have noticed large trucks and closed roads for several days
now.
Men in fluorescent gear are laying what appears to be wires along the
berm of roads in Monongalia and Marion counties, as flagmen direct
traffic around the crews.
Those crews work for Geokinetics Inc. and they are doing seismic
testing for oil and gas, said Peter Duncan, a project manager for the
Houston-based company.
“It’s really quite innocuous,” he said.
The wires send energy waves through layers of earth to determine if oil
and gas are below, Duncan said. The information is provided to
Geokinetics’ clients.
Such testing is done throughout the country, Duncan said, and his
company has been in West Virginia for about two years.
There is no danger to people or homes, he said. The company monitors
the waves put out during the testing.
Duncan said the mapping is done from the roads, but it requires them to
close one lane for a while.
The company is required to get a permit to close part of the road from
the West Virginia Department of Transportation, Duncan said. The DOT
must be told where the crews will work each day. The permit also limits
when they can work, for example they can’t work on WVU football game
days.
The company also doesn’t test during inclement weather, Duncan said.
DOT spokesman Brent Walker didn’t have a copy of the Geokinetics
permit, but said it isn’t uncommon for the department to issue permits.
If a group, such as surveyors, presents a plan, it can get a permit to
close a portion of road.
The permit grants permission to close the road, but the reason why is
included in the application, Walker said.