Oilfield Facebook Page Uses Satire to Underscore Tragic Consequences Of Fracking
Facebook Page Uses Dark Humor To Underscore Tragedy of Bakken Oilfield Accidents
Sometimes, you have to laugh just to keep from crying. At least, that seems to be the sentiment behind a new Facebook page, Bakken Oil Field Fail of the Day, that has cropped up to lambast the Bakken Oilfields of western North Dakota. It’s run by an anonymous North Dakota man who posts photos from submitters to showcase the often tragicomic nature of life in the region. “Got the Bakken Blues?” asks a cheery photographed flyer. The answer to coping with blowouts and the death of oil field workers, suggests the flyer, is a tandem skydiving trip.
Sometimes, despite the light tone, the images show some truly shocking situations. Overturned semis are a common theme, as are field fires. Commenters chime in with any news they might have about what happened, and commiserate with jokes and sympathy. Given the residents’ conflicted relationship with the oilfields and oil extraction companies operating in the region, it’s no surprise that the page often takes a dark turn.
The Dark Side of the Bakken Oil Boom
In 2006, advances in fracking technology transformed North Dakota from a primarily agricultural state into an oil-producing area, when the reserves of crude oil in Bakken suddenly became accessible. The state enjoyed an economic boom, and very few restrictions were placed on the oil companies that brought the new economic upturn to the state and region. State regulators often viewed the companies as trusted partners rather than as potential liabilities.
In some cases, regulators have chosen not to enforce the regulations that are already on the books. State officials have expressed concern that antagonizing the oil companies could cause them to go bankrupt or walk away from the state—although the wealth of oil in North Dakota suggests otherwise. In any case, the oil companies don’t seem likely to change their ways on their own. They avoid paying settlements to the families of injured or killed workers, and they offer financial incentives to speed up production, increasing the odds of an accident.
How Unsafe Practices Have Killed Workers
The conduct of the oil companies and repeated blowouts have had an enormous human cost. Frequently, the cause of deaths and injuries is a well blowout. Those who make it out alive claim that the companies make little effort to protect their workers. In 2014, for example, the Skurupey Well blew out, and a worker was injured. The company that operated that well waited 10 hours to report the blowout, and then attempted to cover up the man’s injuries, which included burns on 60 percent of his body. He eventually sued and reached a settlement out of court.
Some workers have not been lucky enough to survive. The year 2014 saw the largest-ever blowout at the time in Bakken, which killed two men. Another worker injured by the same blowout allegedly suffered from post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) and later committed suicide. On average, someone dies every six weeks from an accident in Bakken, for a total of 74 reported since 2006. The real number could in fact be higher, as federal regulators don’t have a system for recording deaths caused by oil and gas-related events, and OSHA does not record the deaths of independent contractors.
Oil Spills and the Bakken Environment
The damage to the environment has also made life hard for North Dakota’s former economic providers: farmers. Sometimes, thousands of gallons of oil leak out of pipelines straight into the fields, ruining crops of canola, sunflower, and harming herds of grazing cattle. In 2013, the state saw one environmental incident for every six wells in North Dakota, which represents an increase since 2006, when the figure was one incident for every eleven wells. Between 2006 and 2014, more than 18.4 million gallons of oil and chemicals were spilled or leaked into the soil and air in North Dakota, and the rate has been continuously on the rise since the beginning of the oil boom. Continental Resources has been one of the worst offenders; the company has spilled more oil than any of the other producers, and has paid the North Dakota Industrial Commission only $20,000 out of $222,222 in assessed fines.
Finding Community Strength
In a way, the Bakken Oil Field Fail of the Day page has turned into a sort of coping mechanism for North Dakotans. It has over 108,000 likes, and gets over 200,000 unique page views every week (for reference, around 740,000 people live in North Dakota). Sometimes, the page has even provided vital support to Bakken residents. A request for help regarding a stolen utility trailer eventually led to its recovery. Commenters on the page once helped find a person who had gone missing on the oilfields. A Facebook page like this suggests that North Dakotans can find strength in community solidarity to fight back against corporate interests that place worker safety in jeopardy in the quest for profits.
Sources:
Billings Gazette: Oilfield Follies
New York Times: Downside of the Boom