Lawrence, environs not attractive to drillers

Not even oil prices near $60 per barrel have been enough to stop the decline of Douglas County’s oil industry.

Tim Carr, senior scientist at the Lawrence-based Kansas Geological Survey, said drillers have remained largely uninterested in adding wells to Douglas County, even though there is some oil to be found.

“What you’ve got with Douglas County is people don’t want to deal with the cultural problems,” Carr said.

Carr said drillers would rather drill in more rural areas where they’re less likely to hear complaints from suburbanites. There are active wells, though, in the southern part of the county, especially between Baldwin and the Johnson County line.

“I don’t think people want to chase (oil) up through Lawrence though,” Carr said. “I know I wouldn’t.”

Numbers compiled by Carr’s office bear him out. The number of wells in the county has fallen from 331 in 1996 to 250 in 2004. Production has fallen sharply in the past 10 years, from 73,000 barrels in 1995 to 30,000 in 2004. Through June 2005, the county had pumped 13,000 barrels, putting it on pace for another decline.

Other counties in the area have fared better. In Franklin County, the number of barrels produced in 2004 increased to 94,000, up from 90,000 in 2002. This year, the county is on track to produce more than 100,000 barrels. In Miami County, production increased to 120,000 barrels in 2004, up from 112,000 in 2003. Production this year is expected to reach 120,000 again.

Statewide, Kansas’ production is holding steady for the fourth straight year at 33 million barrels of oil. Carr said anytime Kansas can hold steady it is a victory for the state’s oil industry because it operates in largely mature fields. Kansas oil production peaked at 122 million barrels in 1958.