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Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012-2015

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  • #31
    Re: Latest: Bayou Corne sinkhole grows to 476 feet by 640 feet as caravan of massive drilling equipment arrives

    Louisiana Boat Disappears Into Sinkhole, Workers Rescued

    By CHRISTINA NG (@ChristinaNg27)
    Aug. 16, 2012

    A 400-foot deep sinkhole in Louisiana is expanding and today swallowed the boat of two cleanup workers who had to be rescued from the hole.
    Officials are still fearful of the possibility of explosions from nearby gas-filled caverns.

    "It has expanded 50 feet and during that expansion there were workers that were working on the cleanup of the diesel," Kim Torres, spokeswoman for the Office of Emergency Preparedness, told ABCNews.com today.

    The two workers were in a boat tied to a tree when the area where the tree grew fell into the sinkhole.

    The workers were rescued by airboat. They were uninjured but their boat disappeared into the sinkhole. The cleanup process has been halted.

    The gaping hole measures about 526 feet from northeast to southwest and 640 feet from northwest to southeast. It is in Assumption Parish, La., about 50 miles south of Baton Rouge.

    More...
    A 400-foot deep sinkhole in Louisiana is expanding and swallowed the boat of two clean-up workers who had to be rescued from the hole today. Officials are still fearful of the possibility of an explosion in the area.
    "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear."
    -Nelson Mandela

    Comment


    • #32
      Re: Latest: Bayou Corne sinkhole grows to 476 feet by 640 feet as caravan of massive drilling equipment arrives

      DEQ seeks salt cavern butane scenario

      BY DAVID J. MITCHELL
      River Parishes bureau
      August 16, 2012

      The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality has asked the operator of a salt cavern near a sinkhole in northern Assumption Parish to describe what would happen if all butane that could be held in the underground storage facility were released to the surface, state officials said Tuesday.
      ...
      The Crosstex salt cavern, which holds 940,000 barrels of liquid butane under pressure, is 1,600 feet from the sinkhole on the adjacent Texas Brine Co. LLC property south of La. 70 south.
      ....
      Madhurendu B. Kumar, director of the DNR Office of Conservation, Geological Oil and Gas Division, presented the worst-case scenario zone for the sinkhole to parish residents in an Aug. 7 meeting in Pierre Part.

      Calculating based on the assumption that the 20-million-barrel Texas Brine cavern is the cause of the sinkhole, Kumar said in an interview after the meeting, the worst-case scenario would give the sinkhole a radius of 700 feet.

      That is less than the sinkhole?s distance to the Crosstex cavern, parish officials confirmed.

      When asked Tuesday, Chris Piehler, DEQ Enforcement Division administrator, said reports that release of the butane from the Crosstex cavern could be equivalent to an H-bomb explosion are ?a little bit over the top.?
      ...
      John Boudreaux, director of the Assumption Parish Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, said officials are not concerned that the sinkhole would expand and swallow up the Crosstex cavern, but that the sinkhole could expand and shift the cap of sediment and rock that sits atop Napoleonville Dome.

      Such a shift, though it would have to occur across 1,600 feet of caprock, could damage the casing of the well bore leading to the underground cavern, possibly releasing the butane, Boudreaux explained.

      ?It?s not impossible. No one can say that it can?t happen. The scientists are aware of that, but it?s very unlikely that it would happen,? Boudreaux said.
      ...
      Full text:
      "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear."
      -Nelson Mandela

      Comment


      • #33
        Re: Latest: Bayou Corne sinkhole grows to 476 feet by 640 feet as caravan of massive drilling equipment arrives

        DEQ Louisiana
        For Immediate Release Contact: Rodney Mallett
        Aug. 16, 2012 Telephone: 225-219-3964

        Crosstex Butane Cavern Shows Little-to-no Threat to Slurry Hole Area

        BATON ROUGE - The departments of Environmental Quality and Natural Resources have reviewed Crosstex Entergy Services? updated risk management plan for its storage cavern in Assumption Parish.Both agencies agree with Crosstex?s calculations that the cavern poses little-to-no threat to the population near where a slurry hole appeared in early August.

        On Wednesday, at DEQ?s request, Crosstex Energy Services re-evaluated their worst case scenario analysis. Their initial analysis was based on the concept of a failure of the pipeline at the surface. Based on that analysis, the impact radius calculated was broken windows at 0.3 miles. It was noted that the quantity of butane was doubled for this calculation in order to be more protective of human health. At the state?s request, Crosstex modified their worst-case scenario to consider that their butane-filled cavern was akin to an underground storage tank and calculations should be based on any failure of that system.

        An important factor to understand is that the butane in this cavern is stored more than a half-mile below ground surface. At this depth and pressure, the butane is a liquid. The only way to get it to the surface is to pump salt water, which is heavier than butane, into the cavern in order to displace the butane to the surface. A failure of the cavern or piping would not cause this material to free-flow upward to the surface.

        Concerns have been expressed regarding the possibility of the sink hole somehow expanding into the cavern holding the butane. It should be noted that the cavern containing the butane liquid is more than a half-mile underground and deep in the stable salt dome. The sink hole, at the deepest depth known to this point, is 300 feet.

        While it is easy to simply convert the known quantity of butane into a blast scenario, that does not mean this scenario is possible. A blast scenario of the liquid butane stored at the pressure and depth at which it is stored in the absence of oxygen is not possible. If the piping failed, some vapors could come to the top of the well head. If there was an ignition source, there could be slow burn at the wellhead. Lacking pressure or some other driving force to push it rapidly to the surface, it would not be expected to create a violent reaction such as an explosion. If the salt dome were to fracture and cause the casing for the storage of the liquid butane to crack, the liquid butane would flow into the cracks of the salt dome and not come to the surface. To see Crosstex?s letter explaining the calculations and the worst case scenario, go to www.deq.louisiana.gov.



        Crosstex?s letter explaining the calculations and the worst case scenario:
        "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear."
        -Nelson Mandela

        Comment


        • #34
          Re: Latest: Workers rescued as boat pulled down into Bayou Corne sinkhole

          It sounds like they made the best choice to suspend cleanup operations after that close call today. It's too bad the chemicals can't be removed, but that will have to wait until the geology is stable.

          Thanks for finding the worst case scenario letter, Pathfinder. That clears up some questions I had. The Leanweb map showed 3 gas storage caverns in the sinkhole area, (though it appears that the sinkhole is either outside or on the edge of the salt dome itself), and I could only account for 2 caverns from the news reports and documents I could find.

          One is the NS1 cavern Chevron owns and is in the process of emptying. The other was one reported owned by Crosstex with the 940,000 barrels of butane.

          I found this report about Crosstex online and it says they own two separate caverns there, but the total capacity is much larger than 940,000 barrels.

          http://yahoo.brand.edgar-online.com/...ig5F6ACwIm34l7
          Napoleonville Storage Facility. The Napoleonville NGL storage facility, located outside of Belle Rose, Louisiana, is connected to the Riverside facility and has a total capacity in excess of 3.1 million barrels of underground storage from two existing caverns. The caverns are currently operated in propane and butane service, and space is leased to customers for a fee.
          In the letter you found, they explain that one cavern is not holding gas right now, and the other is not full to capacity.

          Texas Brine is going to help out evacuees, even if it hasn't been proven yet that their cavern created the sinkhole, gas bubbling and seismic activity. At least that might reduce stress and enable more people to leave the area until it's stable.

          http://theadvocate.com/home/3651200-...khole-incident
          _____________________________________________

          Ask Congress to Investigate COVID Origins and Government Response to Pandemic.

          i love myself. the quietest. simplest. most powerful. revolution ever. ---- nayyirah waheed

          "...there’s an obvious contest that’s happening between different sectors of the colonial ruling class in this country. And they would, if they could, lump us into their beef, their struggle." ---- Omali Yeshitela, African People’s Socialist Party

          (My posts are not intended as advice or professional assessments of any kind.)
          Never forget Excalibur.

          Comment


          • #35
            Re: Latest: Workers rescued as boat pulled down into Bayou Corne sinkhole

            Drilling to determine cause of sinkhole begins in Bayou Corne

            Posted: Aug 18, 2012 8:07 PM CDT Updated: Aug 18, 2012 8:27 PM CDT
            By Kelsey Davis -

            ASSUMPTION PARISH, LA (WAFB) -

            After this week's massive operation to get the equipment from Lafayette down to Assumption Parish, the drilling is now underway for an observation well for the sinkhole in Bayou Corne.

            ...Experts will drill into Texas Brine's abandoned salt cavern to see if it failed and created this massive sinkhole a few weeks ago. Parish officials say this could be a long process.
            ...
            "They estimate it's going to take 40 days just to enter the cavern. And then entering the cavern is just the beginning because then all the testing and science comes in after the cavern's entered," said Boudreaux...

            Full text:
            "Safety and security don't just happen, they are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear."
            -Nelson Mandela

            Comment


            • #36
              Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012

              A number of years ago, Germany did a report:

              Geotechnical Exploration of the Gorleben Salt Dome

              It's a big .pdf and it has many pictures, charts and detailed explanations of how they test, what equipment they test with, etc. I would guess that some of these techniques will be used for testing this salt dome, too.

              The salvage of human life ought to be placed above barter and exchange ~ Louis Harris, 1918

              Comment


              • #37
                Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                The Advocate reports that Crosstex has decided to move butane to its empty cavern that is 1,000 ft. further from the sinkhole than its current location:

                http://theadvocate.com/home/3671799-...ransfer-butane

                The Assumption Parish Police Jury blog put up a photo of Texas Brine's new drilling rig towering over the landscape yesterday:

                http://assumptionla.wordpress.com/20...-taken-081812/

                Here's the latest flyovers:

                <object width="560" height="315"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/gl7MoiVZeRE?version=3&amp;hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/gl7MoiVZeRE?version=3&amp;hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="560" height="315" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

                <object width="560" height="315"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RGORbZJ2ikI?version=3&amp;hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RGORbZJ2ikI?version=3&amp;hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="560" height="315" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>
                _____________________________________________

                Ask Congress to Investigate COVID Origins and Government Response to Pandemic.

                i love myself. the quietest. simplest. most powerful. revolution ever. ---- nayyirah waheed

                "...there’s an obvious contest that’s happening between different sectors of the colonial ruling class in this country. And they would, if they could, lump us into their beef, their struggle." ---- Omali Yeshitela, African People’s Socialist Party

                (My posts are not intended as advice or professional assessments of any kind.)
                Never forget Excalibur.

                Comment


                • #38
                  Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                  Thanks to Nola.com for this graphic of the Napoleon Salt Dome.

                  Bayou Corne — Given the recent appearance of a massive sinkhole near his new Assumption Parish home, Greg Denton picked the wrong time to move. Weeks after he and his


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                  I'm having a hard time trying to understand the threat to humans with this. These pics are copied from my Lake Peigneur thread.

                  If the Napoleon Salt Dome is mined in the same manner as the one under Lake Peigneur, then I can understand the concern. That one was flooded and everything was lost.
                  Credit for pics http://www.thelivingmoon.com/45jack_...Louisiana.html

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                  But, if Napoleon has been mined like the one in this Google image, then I'm not understanding where the potential danger to residents comes from (other than the surface pollution). Do they think the actual dome is cracked?

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                  By looking at the NOLA pic, I'd like to know exactly what happens with "loss of integrity in the well bore."

                  Mark Cartwright, representing Texas Brine, admitted the company had to abandon operations at the mine last year as the result of "loss of integrity in the well bore." Testing indicated they were drilling in an area that was much closer to the edge of the salt area than initially thought. Drilling too close to the edge could puncture a protective outer layer of solid rock salt, and threaten the integrity of the caverns, causing a possible collapse.

                  In response to a question regarding the thickness of the remaining protective outer salt layer, Cartwright was unable to say how close to the edge they were drilling. He could only say that initial studies indicated they were "hundreds of feet" away from the edge when they began drilling, but that measurement was taken years ago using older technology.
                  One more pic showing how brine mining is done

                  Click image for larger version

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                  The salvage of human life ought to be placed above barter and exchange ~ Louis Harris, 1918

                  Comment


                  • #39
                    Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                    OK.. to answer my own question: Yes, Texas Brine does think it's possible that the salt dome has been compromised due to the fact that it failed its pressure test. All of this information makes more sense with a graphic of the dome.

                    From the letter at this link


                    At this time, a breach out of the salt dome appears possible.

                    ... ...and to seek DNR guidance in developing a plan for continuous guidance.
                    In early September 2010, Texas Brine began reworking the cavern well, milling a section of salt higher than the existing cavern roof, at 3,400 feet deep, to see if the upper strata could be mined. A DNR permit for that work was issued in May 2010.

                    Ball explained Wednesday that officials believe that area, which extended for about 100 feet through the well casing above the cavern roof, may be the source of the possible salt dome wall breach.


                    If the salt dome itself is cracked, that would be a worse-case scenario?
                    The salvage of human life ought to be placed above barter and exchange ~ Louis Harris, 1918

                    Comment


                    • #40
                      Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                      Maybe they'll be looking for groundwater intrusion. Whether that is happening or not might be a factor in risk assessment.

                      As far as the issue of well bore integrity, I think the concern mentioned there is butane leakage to the surface.
                      ETA: I thought the well bore concern was about the Crosstex cavern. That's why my comment below was about butane. I'd be interested in learning more about the relationship between a possible dome breach and well bore failure in the case of the Texas Brine cavern.

                      A Koch pipeline leaked liquified butane in Lively, Texas in 1999 and formed a gas cloud and ignited when a truck drove through it, killing two people.






                      PB98-916503
                      NTSB/PAR-98/02/SUM
                      NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD
                      WASHINGTON, D.C. 20594
                      PIPELINE ACCIDENT SUMMARY REPORT
                      PIPELINE RUPTURE, LIQUID BUTANE RELEASE,
                      AND FIRE
                      LIVELY, TEXAS AUGUST 24, 1996
                      The other unknown is the methane gas mix still bubbling up in Bayou Corne. Nobody knows where this is coming from.

                      Then there are the known dangers you mentioned, mixin, as far as surface contamination. Louisiana Weekly has an comprehensive article below that quotes the Assumption Parish sheriff saying that they are still smelling diesel-like odors at times.

                      So I'm glad that there is finally some financial aid for evacuation

                      Edited to add from above link (s.)

                      “The sinkhole is about 1,600 feet from a cavern containing over 900,000 barrels of liquid butane,” said Assumption Parish Sheriff Mike Waguespack

                      and

                      Sonny Cranch, spokesman for Texas Brine, said “the site is not radioactive. That’s been confirmed by Louisiana Dept. of Environmental Quality tests and by the state Dept. of Natural Resources.

                      and

                      Attorney Daniel Becnel Jr. in Reserve, who filed a class action suit on behalf of neighbors, said “the reason residents worry about radioactivity is because companies store radioactive material at the bottom of these caverns. All the companies around here inject pollution into deep-water wells, hoping it will never surface. Gas, however, has started bubbling up from this sinkhole.”
                      Last edited by sharon sanders; August 21, 2012, 10:49 AM. Reason: added 3 quotes
                      _____________________________________________

                      Ask Congress to Investigate COVID Origins and Government Response to Pandemic.

                      i love myself. the quietest. simplest. most powerful. revolution ever. ---- nayyirah waheed

                      "...there’s an obvious contest that’s happening between different sectors of the colonial ruling class in this country. And they would, if they could, lump us into their beef, their struggle." ---- Omali Yeshitela, African People’s Socialist Party

                      (My posts are not intended as advice or professional assessments of any kind.)
                      Never forget Excalibur.

                      Comment


                      • #41
                        Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                        Tests: Salt water runs deep
                        BY David J. Mitchell
                        River Parishes bureau
                        August 21, 2012

                        [Snips]

                        DEQ?s Piehler said the pending tests on the sinkhole water samples taken Aug. 15 will look at the kind of ions in the water. Those tests may give a clue about whether the water comes from the cavern or naturally salty water in the ground, he said.

                        At 50 feet, samples pointed to a salinity of around 12 parts per thousand.
                        At 100 feet, samples indicated the water had a salinity about 66 parts per thousand.
                        At 150 feet, samples indicated the water had a salinity of 220 parts per thousand.

                        Fresh water?s salinity is about 0.5 to 1 part per thousand, while the salinity of the open Gulf is about 35 parts per thousand, Piehler has said.

                        The salinity of brine from the Texas Brine cavern is 312,000 milligrams per liter, Cranch has said. DEQ officials confirmed that figure converts into 312 parts per thousand.



                        **************************

                        I think now is a good time to post the map of the cavern sites: LEAN

                        Click image for larger version

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                        The salvage of human life ought to be placed above barter and exchange ~ Louis Harris, 1918

                        Comment


                        • #42
                          Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                          I found these diagrams at this link, located in the permit dated Aug 13.
                          Also included in the permit is a 44 step action plan for the work they are doing.

                          Link to the portal: http://dnr.louisiana.gov/index.cfm?m...detail&aid=958
                          Link to the PDF: http://dnr.louisiana.gov/assets/news...ine_Permit.pdf

                          The first one is a diagram of the well-drilling plan

                          Click image for larger version

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                          This one is of the actual dome

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                          The Advocate published a good explanation of the drilling process.

                          [snips]

                          Along the way, as the observational well goes deeper toward its target, drillers will be stopping to install and cement in place progressively narrower casing pipe.
                          ...
                          The cavern roof is at 3,400 feet underground, and the cavern extends down to 5,650 feet. The roof is 150 feet across. Its base is 310 feet across.
                          ...
                          When asked Tuesday, Cranch said that if Texas Brine finds a cavern filled with brine, something else is occurring under the earth that may be causing the sinkhole and further investigation is needed.
                          ...
                          Jill McMillan, spokeswoman for Crosstex, said Tuesday the transfer of butane from one Crosstex cavern to another is expected to take two months.

                          Last edited by mixin; September 25, 2012, 08:30 AM. Reason: Fixed the bad link
                          The salvage of human life ought to be placed above barter and exchange ~ Louis Harris, 1918

                          Comment


                          • #43
                            Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                            I think you may have found a good drawing of the actual well (cavern) in you last picture, mixin. "Vulcan No. 3" seems to be what the well was called back in 1995:

                            http://theadvocate.com/csp/mediapool...ters080912.pdf

                            If so, that gives a good idea of how massive the cavern is. I don't think the drawing is truly to scale, since it would be a squeeze to fit another cavern on top of the one in the drawing. Since there was another 3,500 feet above the top of the first cavern, I guess they thought it would work out at the time.

                            ETA: That is amazing about the butane transfer taking 2 months to move 1,000 feet. I was wondering how difficult something like that is to do.
                            Last edited by Emily; August 23, 2012, 07:19 AM. Reason: Added ETA.
                            _____________________________________________

                            Ask Congress to Investigate COVID Origins and Government Response to Pandemic.

                            i love myself. the quietest. simplest. most powerful. revolution ever. ---- nayyirah waheed

                            "...there’s an obvious contest that’s happening between different sectors of the colonial ruling class in this country. And they would, if they could, lump us into their beef, their struggle." ---- Omali Yeshitela, African People’s Socialist Party

                            (My posts are not intended as advice or professional assessments of any kind.)
                            Never forget Excalibur.

                            Comment


                            • #44
                              Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                              I couldn't decide, given the info I've found so far, if there is another cavern or not on top of this one. Certainly, I haven't found any pics with the upper one included.

                              So I'm thinking there isn't one.

                              I have no idea how this: "This area extends for about 100 feet through the well casing above the cavern roof." translates for those of us who are not knowledgeable about drilling techniques.

                              http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/08/13/49239.htm[snips]
                              "In early September 2010, defendant began reworking the cavern well, milling a section of salt higher than the existing cavern roof, at 3,400 feet deep, to see if the upper strata could be mined. This area extends for about 100 feet through the well casing above the cavern roof.
                              On January 21, 2011, Mark J. Cartwright, President of Texas Brine Co. Saltville informed the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (LDNR), via letter, about a failed integrity test of the cavern and suspicion that the cavern may have breached the Napoleonville Dome's outer wall. These problems with the cavern led to the cavern being plugged in June 2011. The area milled in September 2010 may be the source of the salt dome breach.
                              LDNR records show that Defendant had been examining the cavern's wall at least since June 2010.
                              ...
                              The document, which was released in 1998, states that Louisiana law prohibited storage of naturally occurring radioactive waste in salt caverns, and that the law would have to be amended before storage would be possible.
                              The salvage of human life ought to be placed above barter and exchange ~ Louis Harris, 1918

                              Comment


                              • #45
                                Re: Louisiana: Assumption Parish Bayou Corne Sinkhole 2012 (Update: Crosstex to move butane)

                                Maybe they were trying to make the cavern larger then, by mining upwards.

                                reworking the cavern well, milling a section of salt higher than the existing cavern roof
                                I don't understand this, either:

                                "This area extends for about 100 feet through the well casing above the cavern roof."
                                I've wondered if that is the actual breach area.

                                Some radioactive waste of the 'NORM' type has been found by the latest DEQ sampling. The levels are said to be within acceptable limits, but seem above levels acceptable in drinking water:

                                http://www.southernstudies.org/2012/...ster-site.html
                                _____________________________________________

                                Ask Congress to Investigate COVID Origins and Government Response to Pandemic.

                                i love myself. the quietest. simplest. most powerful. revolution ever. ---- nayyirah waheed

                                "...there’s an obvious contest that’s happening between different sectors of the colonial ruling class in this country. And they would, if they could, lump us into their beef, their struggle." ---- Omali Yeshitela, African People’s Socialist Party

                                (My posts are not intended as advice or professional assessments of any kind.)
                                Never forget Excalibur.

                                Comment

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