Office of Conservation

CONSERVATION FIELD AGENTS MEET FOR TRAINING SEMINAR

Commissioner of Conservation Philip N. Asprodites assembled Office of Conservation field agents to Baton Rouge for a training seminar last week to review the latest legal and environmental issues affecting site inspections of oil and gas wells in Louisiana. The Commissioner sees education and training of his staff as high priority in these highly technical times.

The Conservation District Offices and field agents are located in Lafayette, Shreveport and Monroe and are responsible for on-site inspections of the oil and gas activities within the three regions of the state. "The agents are our eyes and ears in the field. The better able they are to do their job, the better the Office of Conservation is able to protect the public health and safety of the citizens of Louisiana," Asprodites said. While much of their job duties include examining oil and gas wells, checking saltwater discharges, and inspecting abandoned wells, their duties also include reviewing and filing various mandated environmental and geological reports. An inspector's report must be legally defensible and can be subpoenaed and used in administrative and court proceedings.

According to Assistant Commissioner Jim Welsh, "the conservation office plans to do more routine training exercises of this kind in the future. We are also providing our agents with needed uniforms, identification badges and communication equipment to assist them in their job duties in conducting site inspections."

Under state laws, the Office of Conservation has regulatory and permitting responsibilities as to all oil and gas activities in the state, including the prevention of waste of oil and gas, pipeline safety, underground injection of oilfield waste, and regulation of the state's natural resources.

Editors: For more information, contact DNR Office of Conservation Jim Welsh at 225-342-5540.