Ruptured Pipeline Pumps Tens of Thousands of Gallons of Shale Oil Along Yellowstone River

A pipeline rupture in Eastern Montana on Saturday, which spilled up to 50,000 gallons of Bakken shale crude oil into the Yellowstone River, has local residents worried that their water supplies may now be contaminated.

"I am not saying the water is unsafe. I am not saying it is safe." —Mary Jo Gehnert, Dawson County Disaster and Emergency Services coordinator 

According to a statement (pdf) released by Bridger Pipeline Co., which operates the Poplar Pipeline, the breach occurred approximately nine miles upstream from Glendive, Montana. The company claims that no more than 1,200 barrels, or 50,000 gallons, of crude oil were released and stated that an "unknown amount of that total has spilled into the Yellowstone River." It was not immediately clear whether their estimates have been independently verified.

Montana officials claimed on Sunday that they were not immediately aware of any health or environmental harm from the spill, according to media reports. However, officials with Dawson County Disaster and Emergency Services released a statement Monday which says that "on Sunday, January 18th, Dawson County began receiving some complaints of odor in drinking water from people who use the municipal water supply."