Oil Is Seeping From A North Dakota Hillside

The North Dakota Department of Health is investigating an oil spill on a western North Dakota butte where oil is seeping out of a hillside. Karl Rockeman, director of the Division of Water Quality, said late Friday that oil was discovered to be seeping out of the hillside in multiple locations. The company has recovered 504 barrels, or 21,168 gallons, of oil and 120 barrels, or 5,040 gallons, of produced water from holes drilled into the subsurface of the site. The total size of the spill is still being determined.  “It may be larger than that yet as well,” Rockeman said. It’s unknown whether the spill has contaminated groundwater. The health department and the North Dakota Oil and Gas Division have been on site multiple times and continue to investigate. The cause is listed as a failure of an underground flow line. Rockeman said it appears likely that the line was leaking for some time before it was discovered.