At that meeting Fire Chief Don Crowson presented a proposal to the council whereby they would charge a nominal fee of $2,454 per well x 326 wells totaling $800K. That cost would cover a half dozen firefighters, monitoring equipment, detectors, protective suits, and some other stuff. The confusing part came in when he explained that the fee would be significantly reduced when, for instance, we have 1,000 wells permitted. 1,000 Wells???? That's what I call a bulk discount! Yep, that's right. The total program will still cost $800K.
The chief also emphasised the City's "Partnership with the industry" stating that, "They are not our enemy." Perhaps he is not aware that the industry views drilling opponents as insurgents.
Arlington City Councilman Mel LeBlanc - who is also Founder and Managing Partner of Shale Play Advisors, LLC - seemed uneasy about these fees saying that he "doesn't have a feeling from industry experts and wants their perspective first" and suggested that, "we get industry feedback getting three or four of those companies to critique this." Gee, I don't see any conflicts of interest here - do you?
And finally, Chief Crowson emphasized how "we are not trying to regulate the industry." Since when did it become taboo to regulate such a potentially dangerous industry operating mere yards from homes, schools, and public spaces which has the capability of blowing up an entire neighborhood? Let's hope that never happens.
