Spill Prevention
Unplanned releases of any kind are contrary to our commitment to environmental stewardship and represent operational inefficiencies we strive to eliminate.
At Coterra, we seek to manage our operations effectively such that spills and incidental releases do not occur. In the event that we do have an incident, we are prepared with secondary containment systems, auto-shutoff instrumentation and controls, response plans, incident investigation and corrective action. In addition, we utilize spill response companies for spill management, remediation and disposal of waste to ensure all releases are handled safely with the wellbeing of our employees, the community and the environment as core values at Coterra.
Learn more about our response plans in the event of an incident:
Mitigation and Containment Systems
Coterra is proactive when it comes to implementing containment systems used to intercept incidental releases and prevent pollution from reaching soil or water. Across our operations, we utilize impervious containment berms/structures and/or double-walled tanks as secondary containment for stored fluids, depending on operating conditions. During the drilling and completion process, Coterra utilizes closed loop circulating systems in addition to temporary secondary containment systems. All secondary containments are inspected routinely to ensure that integrity is maintained.
We also continuously monitor our wellheads and production equipment for corrosion and erosional flow conditions to minimize the potential for piping and equipment failures that could result in an accidental release of produced fluids.
By maintaining a remote, automated system with 24/7 monitoring and control, our personnel can immediately respond to minimize the potential for environmental damage, minimize lost production, and costly cleanups.
Investigation and Corrective Action
No matter the size, all releases are reported internally. We analyze all releases to determine cleanup and restoration needs as well as to identify preventative measures to avoid reoccurrence. Coterra retains third-party remediation contractor professionals to assist in documentation, sample and data collection and analysis, and remediation oversight.
Waste Management
Waste Water
Reducing operational waste is an important objective for Coterra. Our absolute focus is on intentionally designing our processes to maximize efficiency and minimize waste generation. One of the higher-volume waste streams in our operations is wastewater in the form of produced and flowback water. Coterra utilizes water recycling efforts to beneficially reuse generated wastewater to the extent possible. Produced water that isn’t recycled is disposed of through saltwater disposal systems operated by Coterra or third-party operators.
Solid Waste
Solid wastes generated during exploration and production are generally landfilled and options to use the solid waste for beneficial reuse are periodically evaluated. Uncontaminated drill cuttings and soils are beneficially reused, to the extent possible (as discussed under Land Stewardship) in lieu of disposal at solid waste landfills.