Event

Daniel has a routine of riding a horse or an all-terrain vehicle around the ranch to check on the cattle, fence lines, weather, etc. One day, he notices a terrible rotten egg smell on one of their pastures. He thinks he sees continuous bubbling in a low area and patches of mist floating near the ground. The grass nearby looks white. Daniel also notices some sinkholes about three meters wide. A little further in the pasture, Daniel notices two cows standing very close together. When he encourages them to move along, they limp away with broken or sprained legs, probably from tripping in the sinkholes. Daniel and a ranch hand take these cows into the barn and ask Chida to call the veterinarian. The cows have their broken legs splinted and are resting.

Daniel tells his parents the whole story, and Chida calls Western Energy. A representative of Western Energy calls back two days later and asks the ranchers to take photos and describe what they see. Chida and Daniel take photos and compose the email, including the bubbling, the smell, the caved-in area and the injured cattle. Daniel’s version of the email sounds angry and demanding. Aaron asks him to change the tone so that it does not sound hostile, as this might prevent them from getting help from the company. Chida sends the toned-down version of the email.

The Western Energy representative emails and informs them that the venting and bubbling are “acceptable leakage” and states that they will visit the ranch on their next scheduled rotation in a month. The representative does not mention the injured cattle. After the family reads the email, they have a discussion.