CARLSBAD — Two brine wells located inside the city limits are time bombs waiting to happen, Rep. John Heaton, D-Carlsbad, said.They could collapse anytime into sinkholes and swallow everything in their path, he told state Oil and Conservation Division officials.

“It (the collapse of the wells) could happen tomorrow, six months from now or a year,” Heaton said. “This is a concern for all of us. We need to know what you plan to do.”

The OCD, along with the Eddy County Office of Emergency Management and the New Mexico Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management hosted a public meeting Tuesday to update the community on actions that have been taken thus far.

Earlier this month, the OCD put Carlsbad brine well operator I&W Trucking Inc. on notice for unsafe conditions that pose a serious risk to human life and property.

OCD Chairman Mark Fesmire said the location of I&W’s brine operation at 3005 S. Canal St. poses special dangers in the event of a collapse. The facility where the brine operations are located is between U.S. Highways 285 and 62-180 where they converge at a “Y” location commonly known as the South “Y.” The site is also close to the Carlsbad Irrigation District’s canal that delivers water to farmers south of the city.

Fesmire said that I&W has moved its trucking operations to other sites, and his department is working to determine the size of the caverns below. He said that while the move has placed hardships on the company, company officials have been cooperative and have worked well with his agency.

Jim Griswold, of the OCD Environmental Bureau, said the first step was to secure the site and to eliminate I&W traffic. The second steps will be to install early warning instruments to provide the county’s emergency management personnel notice if a sink hole is eminent.

“We are also working to develop the information necessary to create a long term plan for dealing with the site,” Griswold said.

When asked what measures are being taken to prevent a collapse, Griswold said filling the caverns beneath with salt is one option. However, he said determining the actual size of the cavernous area is high on the list of things that must be done.

Heaton said that the public should be given a timetable for when the characterization of the site is to be done.

Griswold said that it could be in a matter of weeks, but that he could not give a precise date. He said the normal characterization method will not work at this particular site and another method will have to be used.

“In addition to characterization to determine how big the cavern is, our other main concern right now is the stabilization of the site and installing an early warning system,” Griswold explained.

Fesmire said that his agency is looking at different options to fill the cavernous area. But it’s still unclear how big the area is at this time. He said that while using salt is one option, it would cost millions.

He said his agency has about $1.8 million in oil and reclamation funds, but that it will not be near enough to do what is needed at the site. He said federal stimulus money and participation by experts from Sandia and Los Alamos National Laboratories are options that will be explored.

“You do what is needed to be done, and we will figure out how to pay for it,” Heaton said, referring to fellow legislators Sen. Vernon Asbill, R-Eddy, and Rep. Bill Gray, R-Eddy, who attended the meeting.

Gray said that he has concerns over the fact that the OCD forced I&W Trucking to move its operations elsewhere.

“It’s private property and it seems to me the state is taking it. How do you plan to reimburse I&W?” Gray asked.

“This is an emergency situation. We are not taking the property,” Fesmire replied. “I’m sure I&W has some legal repercussions. But given the age of the facilities (wells), the potential for a catastrophic failure is very high. I believe the OCD is doing the right thing. All the professionals who have evaluated the data agree there is a high risk that there could be a collapse.”

Residents living in the area also questioned the amount of time they would have to get out of their homes or a nearby church once the warning system warns of an imminent collapse.

Griswold said he could not give a time line. It depends on the mode of failure. It could be anything from slow ground subsidence to a large sinkhole, as occurred at the large sinkhole near Artesia last summer. That sinkhole was the site of brine well.

Joel Arnwine, county emergency management director, said his office is working closely with OCD, New Mexico Homeland Security and Emergency Management and New Mexico Department of Transportation, in developing an emergency plan in the event the sinkholes were to occur.