About 30 people on Saturday attended a town hall-style meeting at the Bloomfield Multi-Cultural Center Bloomfield in which B8D LLC spelled out its plans for a fracking-sand facility and responded to citizen criticisms and disruptions.
Brock Brockinton and Mark Curry of B8D showed a PowerPoint presentation that had been postponed since the heavily attended and vocal City Council meeting on Dec. 23. Saturday’s presentation demonstrated that Brockington and Curry have listened to concerns.
Unlike the Dec. 21 meeting, they were allowed to present their information without disruptions.
The detailed, one-hour PowerPoint presentation focused on previously raised concerns. A timeline chart clearly laid out the process the company went through.
They addressed citizen complaints about their local legal representative, T. Ryan Lane, who has been retained as the required registered agent for their firm. Lane also was attorney for the Bloomfield City Council, presenting a potential conflict of interest until city leaders in December appointed Albuquerque attorney Nann Winter to represent the city in matters relating to B8D.
A detailed timeline of the property development clearly laid out the process the company followed, starting with a search for a suitable property with land, water, electricity, and proximity to oil field activities. A purchase agreement for the property bordering U.S. Highway 550 and Arizona Avenue was submitted April 2 and closed on Aug. 5. The initial zoning change application was submitted Aug. 8 last year, and dirt work, which the city of Bloomfield says was not prohibited despite the Agricultural zone status of the property, started Sept. 16.
B8D went on to clarify the various studies they have conducted as well as conversations with the state’s Mining and Minerals Division, which was invited out for a site visit on Jan. 13. B8D has also started working with the Air Quality Division. The Mining Safety and Health Administration conducted a site visit on Jan. 6. Additional contacts have been made with the Environmental Protection Agency. Brockinton emphasized that B8D has not received a cease-and-desist order.
City Council meeting
Bloomfield will hold a special City Council meeting to decide the fate of the requested zoning change on Monday, Feb. 3. This meeting will be held starting at 6 p.m. at the Bloomfield Multi-Cultural Center, 333 South First St., a larger site than regular council chambers in order to hold the anticipated larger turnout.
Photos and maps of the site were presented, along with conceptual drawings of the proposed property development. Highlighted were the processing facility, water storage pond, truck loading loop, utility corridor, and the donation of a portion of the property for a municipal reservoir and small park. An artist rendering showed the enclosed facility where the sand would be processed, the supporting water storage pond and the tank that would recycle the water used in their process.
Brockinton emphasized that no chemicals are used in their process to separate their frack sand from the raw sandy dirt. As technology has improved, frack sand is no longer required to be the smallest size that had been previously required and that caused health concerns. After being put out to bid, if the zone change is approved, the structure is expected to be completed by late 2025 or early 2026.
It was clearly explained that B8D’s sand processing is different from the many examples of frack sand operations found on the internet, he said, explaining that many of those focus on a dry process, chemical use, small particle size and polluting factors. He noted most of that information is at least 10 to 12 years old and differs significantly from this newer technology, which uses only water for extraction and results in sand significantly larger than the sand previously produced, which can cause health issues.
Many previously expressed citizen concerns focused on water usage. Curry addressed the misconception of continuous water usage and the actual process of managing water. Additionally, if the state State’s Engineering Office approves a change of Bloomfield Irrigation District ditch water usage from agricultural to industrial, water rights which were purchased with the property, the water they would be allowed to access would drop to approximately half the water an agricultural use would be allowed to draw from the ditch. The closed-loop system to be used by B8D would recycle up to 90% of the water used.
As to the reservoir being donated to the city, Bloomfield needs additional water storage, Brockinton said. Currently the city has a 30-day water storage capacity. The new reservoir would increase the city’s holding to a six-month storage capacity.
“We want to be good neighbors,” Brockinton said. “We’ve been asked, ‘Why would you do this?.’ And we’re saying, why would we not? From a business perspective, we’ll dig this out, and then there’s no remediation needed because the city wants the hole. If you look at what the city wants and needs and how we can contribute, it aligns very well with our operation in ways that helps us as well. So it’s a mutually beneficial project.”
The timeline to work on the municipal use has been revised. Currently, Brockinton said, “We think that the construction development of that area would start at the end of this year, and we would be able to provide the excavated area for the city’s reservoir by the end of next year.”
B8D has purchased from a third-party vendor the air-quality monitoring equipment that will be used surrounding the property. The equipment is slated for delivery in approximately 30 days. The air quality equipment is monitored by an independent third-party to ensure no violations. Because their process relies purely on water to extract the sand, no part of this process releases plumes of dust into the air.
Brockinton and Curry explained steps taken to reduce noise issues related to the property. The equipment running the processing facility is powered by electricity, which is quieter than other methods. Also, the processing facility that is being constructed, along with the truck loading areas, are 70 feet below street level, which helps shield the surrounding community from noise. Other noise abatement measures will also be undertaken.
“We’ve engaged a group to deliver noise monitoring and handle a study,” Curry said.
Some citizens were concerned about the noise from earthmoving equipment when the reservoir for the city is excavated. Curry explained that would be a short-term project, conducted during daylight hours Monday through Friday, and sound barriers would be deployed along the perimeter with neighboring properties during the process.
Citizens have expressed concerns about any increased truck traffic, and B8D maintains that their operation would not add significantly to existing truck traffic traversing this corridor. Currently, trucks originating elsewhere travel these roads to local sites to deliver their sand. There are plans to manage truck traffic during peak times, particularly during drop-off and pickup times at Naaba Ani Elementary School, Brockinton said.
A traffic count study has been completed. B8D has been working with the New Mexico Department of Transportation on issuing such as widening Arizona Avenue and installing a traffic light where it meets U.S. Highway 550. Brockinton explained that while citizens had complaints about potential impact to city roads, U.S. Highway 550 is maintained by the state with some federal funding.
Also attending the meeting was Aztec Mayor Michael Padilla, who has concerns about trucks going through Aztec’s historic downtown district, which is already subjected to a large amount of truck traffic. An arterial is planned to bypass the downtown, but that is still two years to completion. Curry expressed B8D’s willingness to sit down with Aztec officials to discuss this issue on a quarterly basis and address issues, if any, that may come up.
Information was also offered about the number of potential and ancillary jobs for local residents. Curry and Brockinton addressed their commitment to hiring locally, and the impact of gross receipts tax and potential revenue from the company’s operations.
Ann anticipated workforce of 32 jobs is tied to the facility, with wages ranging from $17 to $43 an hour, with an anticipated eight to 36 ancillary jobs, such as CDL truck drivers. B8D notes there are experienced miners in the area currently not working.
“We have been painted as the big bad wolf coming in to destroy your town,” Brockinton said. “Our goal is to stimulate the economy, help people in Bloomfield who are anxious to go to work.”
Throughout the meeting, Brockinton and Curry both repeatedly expressed the importance of community engagement, transparency and the desire to be good neighbors. They indicated there would be further presentations and community outreach throughout the process to address any remaining concerns.
Following the PowerPoint presentation, the floor was opened to community members for comments and questions.
- Johnny Wiggins of Bloomfield, a neighbor of the property, has attended every meeting relating to this opportunity.
“Thank you so much for listening and doing what we’ve requested so far,” he said. “One was the air quality, one was the water and one was the noise. So far, you’ve addressed those three. I think you guys did well,” he said. Once the project is completed, he urged the company to have a customer appreciation event, “So folks can come and see your operation to make sure you’re telling us the truth.”
- Another Bloomfield resident, Nathan Lovato, also spoke.
“I’ve been in the oil field for about 30 years, and I’ve been to all these meetings that they’ve done,” he said. “I’m not really happy with some of the way people have been doing stuff in these meetings.”
“They (B8D) have been trying to do everything they can to accommodate everything we have said in our community. They have competition, and the competitors are not going to do what these guys have been doing here in this meeting. So they’re trying to everything they can for Bloomfield, New Mexico, and I hope they get it and do what they need to do, because I think it is good for our community … I want our community to grow.”
All of these plans are contingent upon approval of the zoning change of the site from agricultural to industrial use. Brockinton explained that the presentation was based on their vision. “This is what we hope transpires,” Brockinton said. “We have certainly started developing alternative options for us to consider in the event that things do not go our way.”
