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Couple worries 'firewater' could cause house to explode
KDVR-TV
May 24, 2010
Area: Denver
FORT LUPTON, Colorado - They say they are living with a ticking time bomb: Karen Androvich and her husband have so much methane gas in their water their house could explode.
"Anything could set it off if there was a gas build up," says Karen.
Their water not only catches on fire, the methane is sucking the oxygen out of their home. The Weld County couple realized they had a problem when their carbon monoxide detector kept going off every time they turned on the water.
"It's very scary," Karen says.
The couple grew more concerned when they saw our investigation about the fiery water in Weld County and the possible link to the oil and gas drilling in the area.
"A lot of other people have this problem when there are wells nearby," Karen told us.
The Androviches asked the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to test their water for the petroleum products used in the drilling process. Results showed trace amounts of ethane, propane, and butane, and determined their water was more than 73 percent methane.
But the COGCC noted the "presence of methane with ethane and propane are naturally occurring."
"It doesn't seem natural, especially when we can light our water on fire," Karen says.
But what Karen found most disturbing is the COGCC has known about the dangerous levels of methane at her home since 2007, and never told her.
Included in the same packet as the 2010 water test results were the results of another water test done by the Colorado Oil and gas Conservation Commission which showed dangerously high levels of methane gas in the Androvich's water.
But the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission never told the Androvich's their home could explode or even bothered to share a copy of the three-year-old report until now.
"We were just sort of shocked that we weren't told," Karen says.
Dave Neslin with the COGCC admits they should have notified the Androvich's. "We apologize if they were not made aware of the report, they should have been," he says.
Still, he maintains the oil and gas industry is not responsible for methane in the water in Weld County.
"In this case, it's not related to oil and gas."
But geological investigations in Garfield County, Colorado and other parts of the country have "clearly tied methane contamination to gas and oil drilling."
Those geologists blame faulty cement casing and "hydraulic fracturing" - a deep-drilling process that shoots millions of gallons of water, sand and chemicals into the ground -- for pushing methane gas into underground water supplies.
The Androviches already have a venting system in their well, but it's not enough to release the high levels of methane. They've been told they need a whole new pumping system which could cost as much as $9,000, which they can't afford.
The Androviches just wish the Oil and Gas industry would help them solve their problem.
"Our house could explode while we are sleeping," Karen says.
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