january 2014 newsletter - wyoming geological association

C NT CT A P u b l i c a t i o n o f t h e W y o m i n g G e o l o g i c a l A s s o c i a t i o n

V o l u m e W , N o . 1 January 2 0 1 4

Upcoming January 2014 WGA Luncheon Meetings

Reservations: email [email protected] or call and leave a message at WGA office 307.237.0027

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3 Jan ______________________________

10 Jan

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17 Jan

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24 Jan ____________________ 31 Jan

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NO MEETING! _____________________________________________________________ __________________________________________

TAD TRUE, VICE PRESIDENT, BELLE FOURCHE AND BRIDGER PIPELINES _______________________________________________________________________________________________________

ALFRED ELSER, ASSISTANT DISTRICT MANAGER – SOLID MINERALS, BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT

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WILLIAM DONOVAN, PETROLEUM ENGINEER, DONOVAN BROTHERS INCORPORATED _______________________________________________________________________________________________________

NETWORKING LUNCHEON AND SUMMARY OF LECTURE SERIES 2013

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BREAK FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

CRUDE OIL LOGISTICS IN THE ROCKIES

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SPLIT ESTATE ISSUES IN POWDER RIVER BASIN COAL DEVELOPMENT

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CAN MUDLOGGING SHOWS BE QUANTIFIED? _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

OPEN DISCUSSION & YEAR IN REVIEW

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE— Julia Lemaster

Happy New Years! I hope everyone had a fun holiday season. 2014 is an exci ng year for WGA.

One of our fellow Wyomingites, Randi Mar nsen, will become the AAPG President for 2014‐2015 term star ng in July. She is a senior lec‐turer in petroleum geology at the University of Wyoming.

WGA will be publishing an updated version of the stra graphic chart with the addi on of 1300+ data pages. These are in final edits and will hopefully be sent to publica on in January!

Mike Bingle‐Davis is hard at work along with our commi ee planning our Mining and Metals conference in August. More informa on will be coming this spring.

Please welcome James Glover and Con Trumbull of the BLM to our board. They will be working together as co‐speaker chairs.

A detailed le er reviewing 2013 ac vi es and 2014 plans will be sent out to all members within the next few weeks.

Best Regards,

Julia Lemaster

Table of Contents

President’s Message p. 1

Luncheon Abstracts p. 2 - 3

News You Need To Know! p. 4

Research Grant Created! p. 5

If You Could Speak . . . ? p. 8

Professional Services p. 9 - 10

Professional Development p. 11

WGA Contact Information p. 12

OIL & GAS CONFERENCE p. 13

Calendar Quick Reference p. 14

Call For Papers! p. 6

Fracking — Opinion Piece p. 7

Lunch: Buffet ($12.00), served 11:15a.m. to noon.

Guests: Always Welcome!

Meetings: At Casper Petroleum Club, unless noted.

Speakers’ Presentations: Begin at noon.

JANUARY 2014 LUNCHEON SPEAKER ABSTRACTS 3 Jan No Meeting—New Year’s / Holiday Break

10 Jan Speaker: Tad True, Vice President, Belle Fourche and Bridger Pipelines Title: Crude Oil Logistics in the Rockies

Biography: Tad True is the Vice President of Belle Fourche and Bridger Pipelines and has been with the pipeline group of True Companies since 2004. True pipelines operate approximately 4,000 miles of crude oil pipelines that are located exclusively in the northern Rocky Mountains and are focused on the Powder River and Williston Basins. With gathering systems and mainlines, the pipelines currently transport over 270,000 barrels per day, the bulk of which is Bakken crude. Tad began his career with Arthur Andersen and, following that, became the Director of Finance for Jones Brothers Trucking. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame receiving a Bachelor of Business Administration degree focusing on Finance and Computer applications. Currently he serves on the Board of Directors for Jones Brothers Trucking, Association of Oil Pipelines, the Casper Area Economic Development Alliance, Petroleum Association of Wyoming, North Dakota Petroleum Council and the Independent Petroleum Association of America.

17 Jan Speaker: Alfred Elser, Assistant District Manager – Solid Minerals, Bureau of Land Management Title: Split Estate Issues in Powder River Basin Coal Development

Biography: Al Elser joined the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) High Plains District as the assistant district manager and chief of the Solid Minerals Group in December 2011. The Solid Minerals Group is responsible for managing the federal solid mineral resources – primarily the coal estate – of the Powder River Basin of Wyoming. Elser previously worked for the BLM Wyoming State Office Reservoir Management Group for three years as senior geologist where he authored reasonable foreseeable development scenarios (oil and gas, and geothermal) for most of the Wyoming field offices as well as offices in Colorado, Montana and North and South Dakota. He began his career with the BLM in 2007 as an oil and gas inspection and enforcement officer for the Rawlins Field Office. Prior to his time at the BLM he worked as an environmental geologist focusing on remediation of hydrocarbon contaminated sites in Texas and South Dakota. He received his master of science in geology and his doctorate in chemistry with a concentration in geochemistry from the Georgia State University. He received his bachelor of science degree in geology from the University of Wyoming.

Abstract: Approximately 40 percent of the nation’s electricity comes from coal-fired power plants, and approximately half of the coal feeding these plants is mined in the Wyoming Powder River Basin (PRB) from 13 active open pit surface mines. The vast majority of the coal mined is federally managed. Conversely, the majority of the surface estate is privately owned. As a result, significant split-estate issues can arise during the coal leasing process affecting land owners, the mineral estate and other natural resources such as cultural and historic sites. Further complicating the matter is the fact that while the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages the leasing of the federal coal, the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement and the Wyoming Department of

CONTACT January 2014

...Continued from p.2—Alfred Elser) Environmental Quality manage coal mine permitting. Elser’s talk will discuss split-estate issues in the leasing process, including the role and rights of land owners, and provide recent examples of conflicts and how they were addressed. He will also provide an update on the current status of pending leases in the Wyoming PRB. 24 Jan Speaker: William Donovan, Petroleum Engineer, Donovan Brothers Incorporated Title: Can Mudlogging Shows be Quantified?

Biography: Bill Donovan is a consulting Petroleum Engineer and President of Automated Mudlogging Systems. He received his BS in Geology from the University of Wis-consin (Madison) in 1970 and a MS in Petroleum Engineering from the Colorado School of Mines in 1979. Dr. Doug Hilchie was Bill’s thesis advisor and Dr. Pickett taught Bill the “Pickett Plot”. Bill Donovan is a licensed Professional Engi-neer in New Mexico and Colorado. He holds US Patents for a mudlogging gas trap and a mudlogging gamma ray tool. For the past 25 years, he has worked as a consultant specializing in formation evaluation, reserve evaluation and field studies. Bill’s Wyoming experience includes Powder River Basin CBM evaluation for JM Huber, Pinnacle, Fidelity and Nance/SM.

Abstract: Mudlogging popularity has increased with the advent of horizontal drilling. Often it is the only formation evalua-tion methodology used in horizontal wells. Can mudlogging do more than helping steering and staying zone? This presentation will; 1) discuss oil and gas resources, 2) review basic mudlogging practices 3) outline some mud-logging methods used to estimate gas in place and 4) present results of Powder River Basin CBM evaluation and Appalachian Basin Marcellus formation horizontal drilling evaluation.

Hydrocarbon volume per bulk reservoir volume is key to explaining mudlogging shows. A brief review of gas or oil volumes for coal, shale, hydrate and conventional resources will be presented. The same slide format will be used to highlight the significant volumes of hydrocarbons stored in unconventional resources.

Mudlogging basics will be presented. This includes the definition of a “unit” and the factors influencing mudlog-ging shows. The major factor determining a mudlogging show is the magnitude of the hydrocarbon resource, but there is a complicated interplay between many factors. Some contributing factors are drilling rate, bit size, mud pump volume, flow line temperature, gas trap design and mudlogging sensors. Some common mudlogging mis-conceptions and limitations will be discussed.

Common methods used to evaluate mudlogging show are: 1) rules of thumb, 2) analogy using offset wells, 3) deterministic evaluation, 4) normalization of drilling parameters, 5) normalization by reservoir/formation and 6) calibrated carbide lagging. The advantages and limitation of each method will be discussed. The two examples presented are Powder River Basin Coal Bed Methane gas content and Marcellus shale re-sources presented in MCF/resource volume. The CBM wells were evaluated using carbide lagging. The shale gas resource was evaluated using normalization by reservoir/formation.

The results will demonstrate that mudlogging can be an effective tool for determining resources. Carbide lag-ging, some drilling parameters and simple spreadsheet calculations are needed to convert a mudlogging show into commonly accepted volumetric reserve measurements. 31 Jan Networking Luncheon and Summary of Lecture Series 2013

JANUARY 2014 LUNCHEON SPEAKER ABSTRACTS


JUST ANNOUNCED! Graduate Program in Geology

Soon to be available in Casper! If you are interested in this new opportunity, please contact Dixie Eaton

(WGA Administrator) at 307.237.0027 for more information.

NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW!


Estimated Pricing for the Wyoming Stratigraphy Package is as follows: Package (CD, info pages, and Strat Chart) for WGA Members — $160

Package (CD, info pages, and Strat Chart) for WGA Non-Members — $200 Purchase Strat Chart only (No CD or info pages) — $45

WYOMING GEOLOGICAL ASSN. BOARD ELECTIONS!

James Glover and Con Trumbull have been elected to serve next year as WGA’s 2nd VP co‐chairs, beginning this coming January 2014!

Congratulations!


RESEARCH GRANT CREATED! Stanley A. Schumm Research Grant Just prior to the 2012 annual meeting of the Geological Society of America, an endowed scholarship honoring the life and work of Dr. Stanley Schumm (1927-2011), Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Colorado State University, was cre-ated by Dr. Ellen Wohl, his successor at CSU’s Geology Department. Additional funding was provided by the Schumm family, as well as several of Stanley’s past students, however, further support is needed to bring the account balance to the minimum base level (a fluvial pun of sorts that Dr. Schumm would surely delight in).

For those of you unfamiliar with the life’s work of this world-renown earth sci-entist, an excellent summation document is available at: ftp://rock.geosociety.org/pub/Memorials/v41/Schumm-S.pdf (or simply search on his name and be overwhelmed by page after page of links) . Best known for his focus on fluvial geomorphology, he also wrote and spoke on the philoso-phy of science, and was always delighted to find an answer to an interesting earth science puzzle (whether it was the one he had theorized or not) and he looked for clues and insight wherever he could, once preventing his young children from eating a bowl of pudding because he wanted to watch the des-iccation cracks evolve as it aged in the back of the refrigerator.

When the endowment reaches the threshold level of $25,000, this grant will be presented annually to a graduate student working in fluvial geomorpholo-gy. This prize will join three other named scholarships, the J. Hoover Mackin Award, the Arthur D. Howard Award, and the Marie Morisawa Award that are distributed through the Quaternary Geology and Geomo

rphology Division of GSA.

Beyond the monetary value of these scholarships and the support they provide the recipients and their scientific pursuits, the honor of receiving an award named for such highly respected icons provides inspiration as well, hence, the scholarships are highly sought after and attract many well-qualified candi-dates. Dr. Wohl and others who provided initial funding for the Schumm award hope that you agree that this is a fitting way to recognize the important role that Stanley played in mentoring so many geologists, and to extend his legacy and influence to sup-port young, emerging geomorphologists in the future.

Donations can be made online at http://www.gsafweb.org/makeadonation.html by scrolling down to the Stanley A. Schumm Research Grant, or you can send a personal check to the GSA Foundation, P.O. Box 9140, Boulder, CO 80301 with a note designating the Schumm Grant as the destination for the funds. Contributions are tax deductible in the United States and plans are available for annual pledged donations.

(Note: To access linked articles, which are blue and underlined, simply hold down your CTRL key while left-clicking the link. For example: <CTRL> http://www.gsafweb.org/makeadonation.html).

Article Submitted by: Jeff Ware, Division Geologist Lario Oil & Gas Company

Editor’s Note: Readers may also be interested in the following article published about Stanley A. Schumm in the American geophysical Union’s Blogosphere (http://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2011/04/12/sad-news-stanley-schumm-died-this-weekend/)

CALL FOR PAPERS!


Environmentalists who oppose the development of

shale gas and fracking are making a tragic mistake.

Some oppose shale gas because it is a fossil fuel, a

source of carbon dioxide. Some are concerned by

accounts of the fresh water it needs, by flaming

faucets, by leaked “fugi ve methane”, by pollu on

of the ground with fracking fluid and by damaging

earthquakes. These concerns are either largely false or can be addressed by appropriate regula on.

For shale gas is a wonderful gi that has arrived

just in me. It can not only reduce greenhouse gas

emissions, but also reduce a deadly pollu on known

as PM2.5 that is currently killing over three million people each year, primarily in the developing world. This air pollu on has been largely ignored because PM2.5 was an unrecognised danger un l recently; only in 1997 did it

become part of the US Na onal Ambient Air Quality Standards. It is s ll not monitored in much of the world. Greenhouse warming is widely acknowledged as a serious long‐term threat, but PM2.5 is currently harming more

people. Europe shares an ironic advantage with China – the high price paid for imported natural gas, typically

US$10 per million BTU (compared to US$3.50 in the US). At those prices, the cost of shale drilling and comple on

can be much higher and s ll be profitable. Europe can therefore be the tes ng and proving ground where

innova ve technology can be tried and perfected while s ll profitable. As both global warming and air pollu on

can be mi gated by the development and u lisa on of shale gas, developed economies should help emerging

economies switch from coal to natural gas. Shale gas technology should be advanced as rapidly as possible and

shared freely. Finally, environmentalists should recognise the shale gas revolu on as beneficial to society – and

lend their full support to helping it advance. The full 16-pg paper (PDF) is available here.

(Note: To access linked articles, which are blue and underlined, simply hold down your CTRL key while left-clicking the link. For example: <CTRL> here). Editor’s Note: The above summary, which is excerpted from the above-linked paper by Richard Muller, was submitted by Al Fraser, who worked with Muller in the 1980s. The paper is about fracking, specifically, as it relates to gas. Al noted that it is relevant to our lives and that the paper has a high fact/assertion ratio. Al notes that Muller is “a world-class physicist who led the BEST project that confirmed the existence of 1900s global warming, and he was one of the first of his ilk to call the ‘hockey-stick’ warming publications scientific misconduct.” As noted above, Al worked with Muller, and says he finds Muller to be objective and thorough.


FRACKING — OPINION PIECE


IF YOU COULD SPEAK . . . ?

If you could speak about your life, your travels, your research, your

interests, your ideas on technology and the future of geology as a science and a gateway to a thriving and successful economy,

. . . then, what would you say?

Tear out this page, or print it, fill in the blanks below, and scan/email/walk/”snail mail” it to Dixie Eaton at the WGA office … and you might be the next featured speaker on the WGA Friday-afternoon luncheon floor. You need NOT be a Member of WGA in order to present at our Friday luncheon meetings.

To misquote Charles Lyell, on the science of geology, . . .

“Your presentation may be the key to our future”

I would like to give a presentation at a Friday-afternoon WGA luncheon. My topic is: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My name is: ___________________________________________________________

I work for/my experience is: ______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

Sir Charles Lyell 1797—1875

Principles of Geology Publ. in three volumes,

1880-1833

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES


YOUR BUSINESS CARD HERE !

See page 12 for space

& pricing details

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES




& pricing details



& pricing details

YOUR BUSINESS

CARD HERE !

See page 12 for space & pricing details

____________________



& pricing details

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT


Come in out of the Cold for PTTC Workshops Carbonate Depositional Systems and Seismic Sequence Stratigraphy Tuesday-Wednesday, January 21-22, 2014, 8:30 am – 5 pm, Colorado School of Mines, Ben Parker Student Center Ballroom E Fee: $500, includes food at breaks, workbook, and PDH certificate. Instructors: Dr. John Humphrey and Dr. Joseph Richard Sarg Day 1 of the course will take a detailed look at carbonate rocks and the sediments that make up these rocks. Processes and prod-ucts of various significant carbonate depositional environments will be examined. The first part of the course will emphasize the classification of rock types, identification of constituent carbonate particles, carbonate porosity, and sedimentary processes of these important sedimentary rocks. The second part of the course will cover a wide range of carbonate depositional environments - em-phasis will be on Recent environments as analogs to ancient carbonate sequences. The approach will combine criteria for facies recognition with facies associations, three-dimensional geometries, sedimentary structures, and sedimentary dynamics. Day 2 of the workshop provides an introduction to the application of carbonate facies, diagenesis, and seismic sequence stratigra-phy to exploration and production. The workshop combines seismic, well log and rock data, and the concepts of sequence stratig-raphy to develop interpretations that help predict carbonate hydrocarbon systems, and characterize carbonate reservoirs and seals. The workshop covers (1) a review of the different carbonate platform types (i.e., ramps, prograding banks, and rimmed platforms, both isolated and attached) and their different seismic facies; (2) an introduction to carbonate sequence stratigraphy and the seismic facies of carbonate reservoirs and seals and (3) the recognition of karst using seismic data. Exercises will illustrate these three top-ics and include integrated seismic-well log-rock examples.

Basic Well Log Interpretation Monday-Wednesday, February 18-20, 2013, 8:30 am – 5 pm, Colorado School of Mines, Ben Parker Student Center Ballroom BC Fee: $650, includes food at breaks, class notes, and PDH certificate Instructor: Dr. Dan Krygowski, The Discovery Group, Denver, CO Limit: 60 persons Offers a “hands-on” approach to basic openhole well log analysis and interpretation;

Focuses on the traditional interpretation targets of lithology, porosity, and fluid saturation;

Introduces a variety of interpretation techniques in the context of the availability of newer, more extensive, data;

Is organized by the targets, or goals of the measurements, rather than by the physics of the measurements.

Fluvial Stratigraphy Wednesday – Thursday; February 26-27, 2014 Petroleum Club, Billings Montana Fee: $475 MGS Members, $500 Non-members, includes food, workbook, and PDH certificate. Instructor: Dr. John Holbrook (Texas Christian University) Who should attend: Geologists, engineers, geophysicists, and other professionals engaged in production and/or exploration of reser-voirs that were partly to mostly deposited by river and floodplain processes.

Objectives and content: Fluvial reservoirs abound and are an integral source of the world petroleum supply.

The primary objective of this course is to provide a primer on the range of processes that form fluvial strata and to develop from this genetic framework for assessing the stratigraphic architecture of fluvial reservoirs. The course will provide an overview of riv-er processes and primary controls on fluvial preservation. We will use this background as a basis to explain the range of strati-graphic variations observed in fluvial strata from the bedform to the basin scale. From this foundation, we will explore best tech-niques for reconstructing reservoir stratigraphy from available core, seismic, well-log and outcrop data.

Class Descriptions and Register Online: www.pttcrockies.org For more information, contact Mary Carr, 303.273.3107, [email protected]

Wyoming Geological Association P.O. Box 545 • Casper, WY 82602 • (307) 237.0027 • Fax (307) 234.4048

E-mail: [email protected]

CONTACT

Submission deadline for February 2014 issue is

Friday, January 17th.

All ads must be prepaid. Send ad and payment to:

WGA PO Box 545,

Casper WY 82602 [email protected]

CONTACT ADVERTISING RATES

Full Page 7.5 x 9.5 $100/month $1000/year

1/2 Page 7.5 x 4.5 $50/month $500/year

1/4 Page 3.5 x 4.5 $25/month $250/year

Business Card 3.5 x 2 $10/month $100/year

Various Sizes

Advertising space is also available in the membership directory and the annual field conference guidebook. Discounts are available for advertising in all three publications.

$3.50 per column inch per month ($10 minimum)

COMMITTEES

Nomenclature and Stratigraphic Committee Carl Babb 307.234.7376 Don Cardinal 307.237.4245 Gary Winter 307.265.8888 Lyn George 307.265.6338 Paleontological Resources Brent Breithaupt 307-775-6052 Scholarship Kent Sundell 307.268.2498 SPE Liaison Dave Chase 307.261.7685 U.W. Liaison Phil Nickerson 307.752.2473

WGA 2014 OFFICERS

President Julia Lemaster 307.266.3199 [email protected] Goolsby, Finley & Associates

President-Elect Mike Bingle-Davis 307.333.7737 [email protected] Cameco

1st Vice President Marron Bingle-Davis 307.237.7854 [email protected] Sunshine Valley Petroleum Corporation

Co-Vice Presidents Con Trumble 307.277.1695 [email protected] James Glover 307.261.7701 [email protected]

Secretary/Treasurer Phil Nickerson 307.752.2473 [email protected] Bronco Creek Exploration

Editor Barb McGavern-Atkinson 307.258.7526 [email protected]

Past President Mike Hawks 307.258.8737 [email protected]

CURRENT WGA

AAPG Delegates Mike Kozimko 303.572.3550 Tom Anderson 307.277.8031 Office Administrator and Advertising Dixie Eaton 307.237.0027 Continuing Education Ralph Specht 307.237.7891 [email protected] Dance/Geowives Joanie Dunlap 307.237.7771 Martha Horn (WGA Chairwoman) Field Conference General Chair Julia Lemaster 307.266.3199 [email protected] Library, Arnold Woods Membership & Directory Dixie Eaton 307.237.0027 [email protected]

CONTACT INFORMATION


OIL & GAS CONFERENCE


2014 New Horizons Oil & Gas Conference Sponsored by the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

Rapid City, South Dakota April 23-26, 2014

This ninth annual petroleum conference focuses on oil and gas activities in the north-

ern Great Plains and Rocky Mountains, especially as the as they relate to the Williston, Powder River and Denver-Julesburg Basins.

Wednesday, April 23rd Field Trip: “Paleozoic and Mesozoic Reservoir Rocks of the Southern Black Hills Upli ”

Mark Fahrenbach, South Dakota Geological Survey and Foster Sawyer, South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, Leaders

Thursday, April 24th WELCOMING SESSION

TECHNICAL SESSION I: Reservoir S mula on:

TECHNICAL SESSION II: Impacts of Petroleum Development on Regional Water Resources PUBLIC SESSION IIA: The Petroleum Industry and Regional Economic Development Ben Snow, President, Rapid City Development Center

PUBLIC SESSION IIB: Basics of Petroleum Explora on and Development Steve O’Rourke, former President of Explora on and Appraisal, BHP Billiton

PUBLIC SESSION III: “Environmental Impacts of Petroleum Explora on and Produc on”: Daniel Soeder, DOE “Environmental Risk Assessment for Shale Gas Development”

Friday, April 25th TECHNICAL SESSION III: Best Prac ces for Petroleum

TECHNICAL SESSION IV: The Niobrara Resource Play in the Northern Rockies and Adjacent Plains

Saturday, April 26th Short Course: “Basic Tools for Shale Explora on” Lindell Bridges and Laurel Alexander, Pure Earth Resources, Inc.

Cost: Early registra on: $250; Standard Registra on: $315; Students: $35.

For more specific informa on: GOOGLE “New Horizons Oil and Gas Conference, 2014”, or visit www.sdsmt.edu/conference/NHOG/ or call (605)‐394‐2633

Wyoming Geological Associa on P.O. Box 545

Casper, Wyoming 82602 Website: www.wyogeo.org

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

29 30 31 1 NEW YEAR’S DAY!

2 3 NO MEETING

4

5 6 7 8

9

10 TAD TRUE

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12 13

14

15

16 17 ALFRED ELSER

18

19 20 21

22 23 24 WILLIAM DONOVAN

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26 27

28

29

30 31 NETWORKING

LUNCHEON AND 2013 SUMMARY

1

January 2014


February

December 2013

january 2014 newsletter - wyoming geological association

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