2010 was a busy year for DTD. The company’s crews completed directional drilling in a variety of geologic conditions, including sand and silt, cobbles, hard granitic bedrock, and sandstone. Of that, over 20,000 feet of drilling was for water resource development or environmental remediation. Clients included small municipalities and commercial properties, large manufacturing facilities, Air Force bases, superfund sites, and more. Projects were completed in nine states across the US, from Washington State to Washington DC, and California to Indiana.
DTD even completed what were probably the first shallow directional wells for petroleum development; producing oil from wells drilled uphill into a oil-bearing formation and draining by gravity.
Horizontal air sparge, soil vapor extraction (SVE) and in-situ chemical reduction through injection are the most prevalent applications. Though, we worked with several engineering firms to design and install horizontal wells for LNAPL recovery, construction dewatering, and groundwater supply. New challenges continue to present themselves as geologists and engineers push the length, depth, and curvature of the wells in efforts to reach otherwise inaccessible zones of contamination on their sites.
With several newly-seasoned employees on staff, and a rapidly filling schedule for Q1-2011, next year is shaping up to be another busy and challenging year for DTD, as clients old and new continue to recognize the superiority of horizontal wells for many environmental applications.