Oil

As oil companies consider drilling new wells in the area, some Kansans are learning about a contorvertial production technique called hydraulic fracturing or “fracking”. The process involves fracturing rocks to create passageways for oil and gas. In the past, the rocks have been considered “too tight” for oil production but the new process allows oil and gas to be released. A second process called CO2 sequestration is also being used that compressed carbon dioxide to displace oil. Oil companies, including Shell Oil, Chesapeake Energy and Sandridge Energy, are meeting with state, and city officials along with local residents in South Central Kansas to talk about the use of the procedures in their region.

Hundreds of people are expected to fill Memorial auditorium in Wellington Monday night, to learn more about the oil and gas that could be underground. Oil isn't a new industry in the region, but new drilling techniques are tapping into undiscovered oil fields. Its happening in North Dakota right now. Some say Kansas could be next, and it could result in millions of dollars for the economy. "If we have a oil boom similar or even half of what they had in North Dakota, we're going to have major changes in our communities," said Wellington State Representative Vince Wetta.

If you fried a turkey this Thanksgiving, you may be wondering what to do with all of that oil?  Sedgwick County wants to remind residents to bring their used turkey oil to the Household Hazardous Waste facility.  It's located at 801 Stillwell in Wichita. The county doesn't charge anything for residents who want to drop off oil or other hazardous waste materials.  It's open today from 9 a.m. Until 3 p.m..  It's also open Tuesday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.

Workers laid pipe across Kansas last summer, and earlier this year oil started gushing through it on its way from Canada to Oklahoma.  That took it right through Mike Voit's property south of Chapman. "We kind of had the last pipeline agreement we signed rammed down our throat," Voit says. Some of the most vocal opposition to the Keystone pipeline is coming from a group in Texas which is attempting to get Kansans to keep fighting against the project before work begins in the Lonestar State.

Drove for 3,000 miles? Need an oil change? Think again. Some autobody shops are saying that the frequency of your oil changes depends more upon your driving style than the length of your trip. "If somebody just drives their car on a Sunday afternoon to and from church," says Colin Heagler of the Astro Tune-Up Center in Wichita, "then they probably don't need to change their oil quite as frequently. " Recently, national chain Jiffy Lube changed its policy of how often it recommends drivers change their oil. It used to recommend getting it changed every 3,000 miles.

U.S. regulators have allowed a Canadian company to restart its Keystone oil pipeline after completing repairs and safety tests. Oil from the 1,300-mile pipeline that extends from Canada to Oklahoma and Illinois could begin flowing as soon as Sunday under a revised order from the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. The agency approved the revision on Saturday. The pipeline has been closed since May 29, when workers reported a 10-barrel leak in Kansas.  That followed a leak of 400 barrels of oil in North Dakota on May 7. The pipeline is owned by Calgary-based TransCanada Corp.

Farmers in Kingman County near 20th and SE 130th Avenue noticed a flames and billowing black smoke after lightening struck an oil storage tank Thursday evening. Cheney Fire chief Brad Ewy says emergency crews arrived on the scene and worked to put out the fire before it spread to the surrounding tank batteries. The tank contained salt water and highly flammable drip oil. Cheney firefighters tried to use foam to extinguish the fire in but the flames inside the tank prevented use of the foam.

55 gallons of oil has spilled onto the road at the 2600 Block of South Seneca. Safety crews dumped sand on the road and traffic is now back to normal in the area.

The cost of gas keeps going up as it jumps another 10 cents at many stations in Wichita Thursday. The cost for regular unleaded jumped to $3.65 a gallon Thursday morning. The rising cost of oil is one factor in large increases for the price of gas across the country. Drivers in several states are now paying more than $4 a gallon. In Kansas the average price for regular unleaded is $3.72 a gallon; that price is up from $3.44 a month ago and $2.78 a year ago. Experts say there are some things you can do to make sure your car is getting peak fuel mileage.

St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church was leveled when the Andover tornado hit the area in 1991. Twenty-years later, the church has rebuilt, and the congregation is larger than before.      "God gives you what you need to move along," said Father Mike Baldwin Tuesday afternoon in his sanctuary.  "And we've been blessed. " Father Mike was the pastor at St. Vincent de Paul then.  He still remembers arriving here at midnight, and seeing the destruction by a car's headlights.  "I remember most walking up and seeing a flask of oil.  This particular oil was the oil of healing.  It was a crystal bottle, sitting on the sidewalk, still with some oil in it. "  To the priest, this was highly symbolic.  "I guess I knew from that moment on that we would be okay, that we were in God's hands.