Nebraska AG won't appeal oil and gas decision

Attorney General Doug Peterson’s office released a statement Tuesday saying it will not appeal a ruling by the Cheyenne County District Court overturning a decision by the Nebraska Oil and Gas Commission.

In its statement, the Attorney General’s office stated that while it disagreed with the District Court, the state will not file an appeal.

“The Attorney General’s office maintains that the Nebraska Oil and Gas Commission acted properly and within its authority when it approved the application for a wastewater disposal well,” the statement said.

“However, the Attorney General’s office believes that recent legislation by the Nebraska Legislature has addressed the concerns expressed in the District Court’s decision,” the statement said.

Judge Derek Weimer said in a ruling released June 28, that the Nebraska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission had exceeded its authority in April 2015 when it approved a request by Terex Energy Corp., of Broomfield, Colorado. The company wanted permission to dispose of oil and gas production wastewater into an old oil well on a ranch north of Mitchell in Sioux County.

A petition for the judge’s review was filed by neighboring landowners Jane Grove and Hughson Flying A Ranch Inc. In court documents, they said there is no Nebraska statute that allows the commission to authorize disposal of the wastewater from other states. The judge agreed.

“If the state intended for the commission to have the authority to permit the creation of a commercial disposal well intended to receive and dispose of wastewater from this and any other state, then it should so specify,” Weimer said in hisd ruling. “Silence is not tacit approval.”

The Attorney General’s office said its decision not to appeal was the result of changes to state law which just went into effect.

The Attorney general’s office said the District Court relied on Neb. Rev. Stat. § 57-901 (Reissue 2010), which references production of oil and gas production of “waste” “in Nebraska” or “in the state.” The District Court reasoned the phrases “in Nebraska” and “in the state” restricted the Commission’s authority to regulate oil and gas production and the prevention of waste to Nebraska.

The new legislation used by the AG’s office in its appeal decision was LB 1082 (2016), which went into effect on July 21. That bill amended the language of Neb. Rev. Stat. § 57-901 to remove the phrases “in Nebraska” and “in the state” which were relied upon by the Court in its decision.

The AG’s office said the statute now provides that, “the purpose of Section 57-901 to 57-923 is to permit the development of Nebraska’s oil and gas resources up to the maximum efficient rate of production while promoting the health, safety and environment of the residents of Nebraska.”

In its original ruling on the disposal application, the Oil and Gas Commission allowed for disposal of as much as 5,000 barrels a day of wastewater.

The project drew objections from environmental groups and nearby landowners who worried that leaks or spills could contaminate the Ogallala aquifer, which supplies drinking water to about 2 million people in eight states and supports irrigation.

While the state has decided it will not appeal the decision, the applicant for the disposal well, Terex Energy Corporation, may still do so.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.