KARNES COUNTY – Adrian Opiela, Jr. has learned the hard way that having oilfield pipes buried beneath his property is risky business. And it is a lesson he has learned twice. Last week Opiela made a very unpleasant discovery on his ranch located about 8 miles north of Karnes City in rural Karnes County when he found a major saltwater oil spill that contaminated a large area of land, at least one large stock tank, and killed many large oak trees on the property. And to make matters worse, this isn’t the first time it has happened. Opiela said a similar flowline break happened in the same exact place several years ago, and also killed huge oak trees on the property at that time. It was a two-inch fiberglass flowline that ruptured for unexplained reasons, buried several feet under the ground. “It was oozing out of the ground,” Opiela said, describing the fluids that appeared to be a mixture of saltwater and crude oil. When it happened the first time, Opiela said he could not recall which oil and gas company was involved with the repair, but now just a few years later, he is very unhappy to find the same thing happening again, in the same place. “It is a neglected oilfield, is what it is,” Opiela said. Since the first flowline break, Opiela had a large stock pond dug out and he planned to build a picnic area near the large oak trees with a plaque dedicated to his father, who passed away in recent years. “If you would see it now, you would see that it would be an embarrassment to put anything there,” Opiela said. “It looks terrible.” As soon as Opiela found the contaminated land and stock tank, he contacted the Karnes County Sheriff’s Office who responded immediately to gather evidence as part of their investigation regarding the incident. Opiela said he believes the most recent incident is an example of felony level gross negligence, but according to the sheriff’s office, no criminal charges have yet been filed and the matter remains under investigation. Opiela also contacted the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the Railroad Commission and the game warden. “It was patched once before,” Opiela said. “Why didn’t they patch it right?” Apparently their patch broke. My pond is ruined. Now my cattle, we may have to quarantine them, because we don’t know what they have in their systems.” Flowlines of this kind are the responsibility of Blackbrush, Opiela said, and they are supposed to be monitored by the company so that they will know when a line is broken and know when a leak has happened. But if that’s the case, Opiela wonders why he was the one to discover it, instead of Blackbrush. Judging from the large volume of fluids leaked into the pond and around the area, the contaminants may have been leaking for months, Opiela added. When Opiela visited the site with The Karnes Countywide on Friday, June 14, workers from a company named SafZone, of San Antonio, were on site with heavy equipment beginning the clean-up process. Wade Ingle, senior partner with SafZone, said that Blackbrush Oil and Gas contacted his company with instructions to get the flowline repaired and the site cleaned up as quickly as possible. The contaminants that flowed out of the ruptured flowline were produced fluids from a formation underneath a well-site that were on the way from the formation to a disposal well in the area, Ingle explained. The fluids were mostly saltwater mixed with small amounts of crude oil. Vacuum trucks would remove all the fluids in the stock pond, Ingle explained, and berms would be built to contain the contamination and prevent it from spreading further in the event of a rainstorm. “I am running vacuum trucks 24 hours a day to suck every bit of this out,” Ingle said, adding that contaminated soils would be removed by trucks and disposed of at a facility approved by the Railroad Commission. “This is what I have been told from Blackbrush,” Ingle said. “Get it right. Get it clean. Make it happen.” A Blackbrush production engineer named Kyle Kack who was working at the spill site said that the 2-inch fiberglass pipe was about 60 years old, but would not offer an opinion about what might have caused the line to break. He also could not explain why the break went undetected by Blackbrush. On Monday, June 17, The Karnes Countywide reached out to Blackbrush Oil and Gas for comment regarding the incident and the company faxed a brief unsigned statement. “We received word of the incident on Thursday, June 13,” the statement said. “Our crews were on scene the same day and remained 24/7 through Saturday. The initial clean-up is just about complete. We follow all state and national regulations concerning our operations. We immediately contacted the Texas Railroad Commission, TCEQ, EPA and the National Response Center. They are following our progress.” It was heartbreaking, Opiela said, to see the dead trees, and the mess that the contaminants left on his property. He said his sister was crying as she videotaped the pond and surrounding area knowing that two huge oak trees, one with a circumference of 130 inches and the other with a circumference of 161 inches are in danger and possibly might die as a result of the most recent spill. Opiela estimated the age of the trees to be greater than 150 years old and his family consider them irreplaceable. Opiela said he has been in contact with his attorney, and that it is likely a lawsuit will be filed against Blackbrush in addition to any pending criminal charges. Opiela said he wants Blackbrush to replace the oak trees that were killed with trees of the same exact size and also to do as much as possible to put the property back the way it was before.

By Joe Baker Countywide staff KARNES CITY – Dockets listing a total of 41 cases have been set for Karnes County Court sessions planned for June 25. The court sessions will happen at the Karnes County Offices on the Square in Karnes City. The following is a list of cases for the June 25 morning session beginning at 9 a.m.: Defendant: Raul Reynaldo Morales Offense: Assault Offense date: June 15, 2009 Defendant: Dominica Rivera Offense: Interference with duties of officer Offense date: June 19, 2010 Defendant: Jason R. Cabrera Offense: Appeal - speeding Offense date: Nov. 10, 2011 Defendant: Oscar Jose Cantu Offense: Driving while intoxicated Offense date: April 15, 2012 Defendant: Arturo Amaya Offense: Driving while intoxicated - 2nd Offense date: Oct. 16, 2011 Defendant: Melissa Martinez Offense: False report of peace officer Offense date: July 22, 2012 Defendant: Belen Aguirre Arciniega Offense: Assault Offense date: Feb. 17, 2013 Defendant: Richard Fabian Soto Offense: Accident involving damage to vehicle Offense date: Feb. 9, 2013 Defendant: Richard Fabian Soto Offense: Driving while intoxicated Offense date: Feb. 9, 2013 Defendant: Coty Jay Roberts Offense: Driving while intoxicated – open container Offense date: May 13, 2012 Defendant: Johnny Frank Richardson Offense: Driving while intoxicated Offense date: March 8, 2013 Defendant: Richard Ray Urrutia Offense: Driving while intoxicated Offense date: Nov. 11, 2012 Defendant: Bianca Marie Dominguez Offense: Theft Offense date: Jan. 31, 2013 Defendant: Tricia Ramirez Offense: Theft Offense date: Jan. 31, 2013 Defendant: Benito Danny Jimenez Offense: Appeal - speeding Offense date: Dec. 1, 2012 Defendant: Raul Reynaldo Morales Offense: Prohibited weapon – switchblade - knuckles Offense date: Feb. 16, 2013 Defendant: Jesus Antonio Ramon Offense: Criminal trespass Offense date: June 13, 2012 Defendant: Dominica Rivera Offense: Criminal trespass Offense date: Feb. 18, 2013 Defendant: Tyler Heith Cox Offense: Prohibited weapon – switchblade - knuckles Offense date: March 20, 2013 Defendant: Jerrel Ray Marks Offense: Theft Offense date: April 9, 2013 The following is a list of cases for the June 25 afternoon session beginning at 1:30 p.m.: Defendant: Steven Glen Baldwin Offense: Criminal Trespass Offense date: Feb. 14, 2013 Defendant: Omar Alejandro Gonzales Offense: Driving while intoxicated Offense date: Feb. 20, 2013 Defendant: Mark Anthony Ocana Offense: Driving while intoxicated Offense date: April 13, 2013 Defendant: Ricardo Lucio Vasquez Offense: Reckless driving Offense date: April 16, 2013 Defendant: Thomas Edward Villanueva Offense: Driving while license invalid Offense date: April 15, 2013 Defendant: Raul Reynaldo Morales Offense: Assault – family violence Offense date: April 18, 2013 Defendant: Henry Bazan Maldonado, Jr. Offense: Unlawful restraint Offense date: April 17, 2013 Defendant: Michael Anthony Herrera Offense: Resisting arrest Offense date: June 14, 2012 Defendant: Anthony Joseph Dougherty Offense: Driving while intoxicated Offense date: Feb. 14, 2012 Defendant: Anna Maria Farias Offense: Assault – family violence Offense date: Nov. 9, 2012 Defendant: Jeffrey Lee Jonas Offense: Assault – family violence Offense date: August 30, 2012 Defendant: Jose Carlos Huerta Offense: Assault – family violence Offense date: April 14, 2013 Defendant: Jose Carlos Huerta Offense: Assault – family violence Offense date: April 14, 2013 Defendant: Guadalupe Valdez Rodriguez Offense: Possession of a controlled substance Offense date: April 13, 2013 Defendant: Guadalupe Valdez Rodriguez Offense: Possession of a controlled substance Offense date: April 13, 2013 Defendant: Neil Rodriguez Offense: Appeal - speeding Offense date: Sept. 12, 2012 Defendant: John Arnold Valdez Offense: Appeal – disregard red light Offense date: Dec. 31, 2012 Defendant: Michael Aaron Hartman Offense: Appeal - speeding Offense date: Feb. 26, 2013 Defendant: Juan Gabriel Bueras Offense: Appeal – failure to control speed Offense date: Oct. 26, 2012 Defendant: Michael Earl White Offense: Appeal – disregard traffic light Offense date: Aug. 21, 2012 Defendant: Ricardo Sanchez Offense: Appeal – backed to interfere without safety Offense date: Sept. 30, 2012

Nothing is more clearly taught in the Scriptures than that no man in himself is righteous in the sight of God. “As it is written, ‘There is none righteous, no, not one.’” (Romans 3:10) “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) To appear before God, who is just and holy, we must possess His righteousness. Paul declared that the only method of deliverance from sin is by faith, through the mercy of God, by Jesus Christ. “For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’" (Romans 1:17) We find this doctrine in both the Old and New Testaments – the blessing of God was and is to be secured by faith. Faith is all in all – from the beginning to the end of the Christian life. It is not a faith of works, as if by faith we can be justified by works and then kept by our works; but it is a faith that presses forward, gaining the victory over unbelief. Only a living faith in Christ can build purity of heart, grateful obedience, and an earnest desire to be Christ-like. The reason the gospel is effective is not because it is pure morality or it reveals and confirms a future state of justice, but because the righteousness of God is revealed in it. Its meaning is to be learned not just from the signification of the words, but from the witness of scripture and the explanations given of the whole subject to which it relates. This righteousness is not like justice or goodness. It is righteousness which is attained by faith. It is not by the law (Romans 3:21); it is a gift (Romans 5:17). It is not our own (Romans 10:3); it is from God (Philippians 3:9). These words express that Paul is speaking of a divine attribute. It is the righteousness of God, who is the author. The Bible represents God in the character of a moral judge, and man is placed under a law of morality, which is his duty and the standard by which he is to be judged. This law is revealed in different ways, but it always has the same precepts, the same sanction, and the same promises. Those who obey the demands of this law are declared righteous; they are justified and entitled to God’s blessings. Those who are disobedient are declared unrighteous. The gospel reveals the righteousness which God gives and approves and which is our justification before Him. It is a righteousness which is without the law, but by faith; which is not our own, but a gift from God imputed without works. Christ is our righteousness; we are righteous before God in Christ. “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) Pastor Odom’s message can be heard each Sunday on Radio KAML, AM 990, at 8:30 a.m. Choate Baptist Church meets for Sunday School at 9:45 a.m., Worship at 11 a.m., and Sunday and Wednesday Evening Services at 7 p.m. Visitors are always welcome.