Eagle Pass Community Meeting on Oil and Gas Impacts and Legislation
Press Release.
EAGLE PASS, TX – Community members in Eagle Pass Texas are invited to a gathering on Friday, August 18 at the First Methodist Church on 571 Quarry St.to discuss local impacts from oil and gas, the agency in charge of overseeing the state’s oil and gas industry, and what state and federal opportunities are available to community members.
Commission Shift conducts research, educates lawmakers, and builds community support to reform oil and gas oversight in Texas. This spring, Commission Shift was active in educating the state legislature about solutions for plugging and cleaning up unplugged oil and gas wells, and protecting groundwater in the face of new technologies like carbon capture, use, and storage. Now that the legislative session is over, we are entering the legislative “interim,” which is a good time for the public to reach out to lawmakers to let them know how they can improve our communities and hold agencies like the Railroad Commission accountable.
The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) has no authority over railroads and trains. Instead the RRC is responsible for overseeing oil and gas development, coal and uranium mining, gas utility service, and pipeline safety in Texas. The Railroad Commission has promoted accelerated oil and gas development over safety, environmental protection, and safeguarding our natural resources. This harms public health and pollutes air and water, which all Texans depend on.
“Our communities have a history of being underfunded, underrepresented, and have suffered many environmental injustices such as water pollution and air contamination to name a few,” said Jose Corpus, one of the Commission Shift event organizers and resident of Eagle Pass.“This exclusion is due to the lack of policy enforcement and the lack of language access from state agencies like the Railroad Commission.”
Eagle Pass’s surrounding areas such as Carrizo Spring and Big Well have experienced numerous small earthquakes as a result of hydraulic fracturing, a process used to get oil and gas out of the ground, and underground injection for oil and gas wastewater disposal. For decades, the Eagle Pass community fought a coal mine permit that the Railroad Commission eventually approved -despite loud community opposition.
The Eagle Ford Shale is also surrounded by flaring from oil wells. A 2020 study found that Latinas living next to high rates of flaring have 50 % higher odds of preterm birth. The Railroad Commission regularly allows operators to get exceptions to flaring limits, and does not enforce its flaring rules when they are broken.
Moreover, we are all vulnerable to increased extreme weather. The Railroad Commission plays a large role not only in allowing the emissions that lead to global climate change, but also in determining what measures can be taken to keep our energy supply safe in the face of extreme weather. The power outages we experienced in 2021 took place in large part because the Railroad Commission neglected to require weatherization on the natural gas supply chain over a decade ago.
Intersecting all these issues is the problem of language accessibility at the Railroad Commission. It is already difficult to publicly interface with the bureaucracy at the Railroad Commission, and the lack of Spanish materials and multilingual website virtually exclude any participation from Spanish Speakers in rules that affect them.
Good government means having state agencies that fiercely defend community needs and safety. Commission Shift is inviting community members to come together to discuss issues we have witnessed related to oil and gas development and the Railroad Commission, and to learn the various ways that we can make our voices heard at this important state agency.
Please join us on Friday, August 18, 2023 at 6:00 PM at the First Methodist Church / 571 Quarry St. Eagle Pass, TX 78852.
Commission Shift is reforming oil and gas oversight by building public support to hold the Railroad Commission of Texas accountable to its mission in a shifting energy landscape.
Commission Shift develops solutions to protect consumer rights, prevent orphaned oil and gas wells, and ensure Texans have full access to information and participation opportunities at the Railroad Commission of Texas.
