Page 8 ■ Thursday, March 1, 2012


BISMARCK TRIBUNE EDITORIAL Putting a fi x in state’s oil patch The oil boom in western North Dakota has meant


jobs, a vibrant economy and strong state tax rev- enues.


Getting a handle on the challenges that have come


with the benefi ts of record drilling and crude produc- tion has been diffi cult for local and state government. The intense development has created challenges and unexpected consequences, from dust and traffi c to housing, law enforcement and education. It hasn’t always been pretty. The state has been


playing a lot of “catch up.” Now Gov. Jack Dalrymple, based on a tour of 14


western North Dakota communities, has initiated a state government response tuned toward local issues in the oil patch. It polishes the response from the Leg- islature and fi lls in some of the gaps. It’s practical. Looks to be effective. And it’s a good


mix of immediate nuts-and-bolts actions and re- sources for broader planning. It does not — nor should not — deal with each


and every issue related to oil development. It focuses on the issues facing city and county governments. It does not touch on wildlife or environmental con- cerns, regulation of drilling or pipelines, nor does it take on leasing issues. Those subjects need their own


A plan for the oil patch Continued from page 1


On a related topic, it appears that a


trigger put in place by the legislative spe- cial session will be reached by the end of February and another $30 million in oil impact aid will be available. Dalrymple said it is too soon to spec-


ulate on how the division formula could be changed to help counties, but he said the old thinking that the tax share to counties goes down as oil production increases doesn’t make sense when now it’s a symptom of rapid development of new wells, not a mature oil fi eld. He said a proposal by Rep. Shirley


Meyer, D-Dickinson, to give oil coun- ties 100 percent of their share of oil pro- duction tax for two years, instead of the declining amount they do receive, is an extreme example of a formula revamp, but a middle ground should be found somewhere. With reports of highway crashes and fatalities weekly, if not almost daily, the North Dakota Highway Patrol will add aerial patrol to critical intersections. Oil impact highways will be re-evaluated for signs, turn lanes and other safety measures, and energy companies will be asked to pony up money to pay for turn


lanes where they’ve located water depots or truck yards off of a state highway. Small towns in the oil patch need


more help with planning for growth, and Dalrymple said the state can do a better job of keeping track of where new oil wells are being permitted and advise communities where it expects to see ac- tivity. “We have not had full coordination


of that information in the past,” he said. He said he’s trying to get the oil com-


panies to join in and be “more forthcom- ing” about their development plans. “One large company that’s


active


here (Williston) said it’s within 10 per- cent of the maximum workforce it will ever have,” Dalrymple said. “I think the public would like to know that.” He said oil patch leaders talked about


“logical, rational concerns” during the meetings. “There was nothing frivolous that I saw, just real world things that need to be addressed,” Dalrymple said. To read the full report, go to http://


www.commerce.nd.gov/resources/id- meetings. (Reach reporter Lauren Donovan at 701-220-5511 or lauren@westriv.com.)


TOM STROMME/Tribune


Governor Jack Dalrymple announced the outcome from 14 public meetings held throughout western North Dakota’s oil producing counties at a press conference on Feb. 21 in the capitol. Gov. Dalrymple also said there will be highway bypasses constructed in Williston and New Town to alleviate truck traffi c through both communities. The governor expected both bypasses to be completed and operational by mid-summer. Standing in back from left are Francis Ziegler with the department of transportation, Al Anderson, commissioner of the commerce department and Mike Anderson, executive director of housing and fi nance.


Gov. Jack Dalrymple’s response to oil issues


state responses. Rather, the “tour response” continues legislative ef-


forts with transportation and housing issues, as well as safety and planning. The Legislature, in its regular and special sessions,


tried to tackle the biggest, most pressing issues — pri- marily shortcomings in infrastructure, mostly road improvements. Lawmakers appropriated nearly $1 billion for western North Dakota. The Tribune likes that the state response tries to


move truck traffi c out of communities where there’s oil production. That traffi c has been a huge prob- lem, which requires complicated and expensive fi xes. There’s a commitment toward dealing with dust. It works to make more funds accessible for housing, including low- and moderate-income housing. It puts additional state troopers in the area. And it stresses and supports planning. Most of these issues deal with


the quality of life in the impacted communities. A different sort of wrinkle in the state response is to


hire an “energy impact coordinator” to monitor local issues and report to the governor’s cabinet — in other words, an information pipeline from the oil patch to the Capitol. It appears the idea is to make sure state offi cials have a pulse on what’s going on in western North Dakota. All the pieces in the response, and there are many,


appear to take serious the time spent listening to local offi cials on the tour. It’s not pie-in-the-sky stuff, but reality based. The state response must be effective. It depends


upon state agencies being able to deliver a practical re- sult. It could depend upon how plugged-in the energy impact coordinator might be. And, it’s good to re- member, state government isn’t the only player in this drama. The cast includes the people who live in the oil patch, oil companies, federal agencies and world mar- kets. It’s a show of epic proportions and will require a super effort by all concerned to succeed. The important thing today is that state govern-


ment offi cials talked to local offi cials on the ground, have identifi ed specifi c problems and now have a plan to address the most grievous issues in a practical way.


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