Katherine Culbert

Qualifications: What training, experience, and characteristics qualify you for this position?

I am a Process Safety Engineer who helps Oil & Gas companies operate safely to protect communities and workers and follow regulations. I care about my fellow Texans and want everyone to thrive here.

Oil and Gas Wells: What can the Railroad Commission do to mitigate the harm to the health of people and animals and to land caused by producing and abandoned oil and gas wells?

The RRC needs to continue to monitor plugged and abandoned wells in perpetuity. They need to take responsibility for all old wells in the state, whether they were drilled for production or water and they need to hold the companies that drilled the wells responsible for continuing to monitor and confirm the integrity of the well plugs and repair leaking or damaged wells to protect our communities.

Emissions: What should the Railroad Commission do to reduce the amount of flared gas from oil and gas wells in Texas?

Flaring releases methane (natural gas) and other hazardous air pollutants and contributes to ground-level ozone. RRC needs to update Rule 32 to define when a flaring permit should be granted, remove flaring applications from the consent agenda, and hold companies accountable for the environmental damage they are doing to all of us. They have only denied 44 out of >8000 permits since May '21.

Carbon Capture: Should the Railroad Commission be granted authority to regulate wells and underground storage facilities in Texas that trap and store carbon dioxide? Why or why not?

No, CCUS presents new risks to drinking water from harmful materials like lead, arsenic, and strong acids. The RRC is not funded to allow adequate oversight of this new technology, which is not fully developed, adding more complexity. The RRC is unable to control the oil, gas, and injection wells that are already under its control, we should not add more to further put our communities at risk.

Seismic Activity: How can the Railroad Commission reduce the risk of seismic activity or earthquakes caused by liquids disposal from oil and gas activities?

The limits the RRC are putting on the injection wells are not working. We need to further limit the number of injection wells and the locations by not injecting disposal water near natural fault lines. Additionally, we need to hold the companies accountable for treating the water so it is not toxic and can be reused elsewhere.