Enterprise-Journal from McComb, Mississippi • 50

6-C Friday, March 31, 1989 ENTERPRISE-JOURNAL Perspective Shell committed to recovery of oil from Little Creek field produce," says Johnston. "Eventually the flood will be mature enough that all we'll be doing is recycling. We won't have to bring any more down from Jackson Dome." The only question now is one of economics. Contrary to public perception, Shell isn't raking in big bucks at Little Creek, say company officials. When the company decided to go ahead with the Little Creek project in the early '80s, oil was selling for $28 a barrel.

A barrel now sells for less than $20. Had they been able to predict plummeting oil prices at the time, officials say their decision likely would have been different. But now that they're in it, they remain committed to the project. "We're in the oil business," says Bradley. "Oil prices have come up and gone down in the past.

They'll come up again some day and we'll be able to get a better return on this investment." (Continued from Page 1C) Creek. The field is under 24-hour surveillance. Company officials take pride in the scenic beauty of the field and list environmental concerns at the top of their priority list. The Little Creek production process is a complex one that begins at Jackson Dome, an underground carbon dioxide formation northeast of Jackson. Carbon dioxide, which flows out of the ground in liquid form, is transoorted via the Choctaw Pipeline to Little Creek.

Once at Little Creek, the carbon dioxide is injected into the reservoir at a bottom-hole pressure of about pounds per square inch. The carbon dioxide acts as a solvent in the reservoir, mixing with the trapped oil. "It cleans the oil from the rock much as terpentine cleans oil-base paint from a paint brush." says Bradley. "It mixes with the oil. Since "It cleans the oil from the rock much as terpentine cleans oil-base paint from a paint brush.

It mixes with the oil. Since it's injected under pressure, it's moving through the reservoir and the oil starts to move as well." Tim Bradley it's injected under pressure, it's moving through the reservoir and the oil starts to move as well." The mixture of oil and carbon dioxide eventually washes into a producing well. The two are separated, the oil is saved, and the carbon dioxide is recycled and reinjected into the reservoir. "We're recycling everything we -tart fi? mm 4' li -Mn i' i iT" Water supply plentiful Miocene aquifer one one of state's biggest By Steve Stewart E-J Staff Writer From the Bet-You-Didn't-Know Department comes this tidbit of trivia, courtesy of John Chapman, utility superintendent with the city of McComb's Department of Public Works: McCombites, on an average day, consume three million gallons of water. Surprised? Join the crowd.

"These figures astonish people," says Chapman. "They can't visualize this amount of water. In the summertime, it's much more than that. I use the figure of three million gallons as a year-round average. The low, on a rainy day in the wintertime, will get down to somewhere in the neighborhood of 2.5 million.

On the other hand, during the dry part of the summer last year, we pumped 4.5 million gallons in one day." No need to fret, though, water lovers. Fortunately, there's plenty of the wet stuff to go around, say the experts. That's because McComb gets its water from the miocene aquifer, a plentiful layer of groundwater that stretches from Louisiana across Mississippi into Alabama. THE BAND IS bordered on the north by Jackson and extends south to just below Hattiesburg. "The miocene is one of the most prolific aquifers in the.

state," says Mike Gross, coordinator of the groundwater section of the state Bureau of Land and Water Resources. It's also one of the least tapped. "We don't have the agricultural requirements that the Delta has and we don't have heavy industrial requirements," says Chapman, noting that Southwest Mississippi Regional Medical Center is McComb's biggest user. A plentiful source like the miocene, combined with mainly residential usage, makes McComb's water future a bright one, officials say. "From what we know about the miocene aquifer and what the U.S.

Photo by Jimmy Dempsey John Chapman, utility superintendent for city of McComb He says McCombites consume 3 million gallons of water daily OR WOULD YOU LIKE TO BUILD A NEW HOME? We're concerned about our customers 1 Hour Approval Fixed Interest Rate 100 Financing 100 Financing on Your Lot 48 Hour Approval Fixed Interest Rate Energy Efficient Home Quality Construction No Discount Points No Closing Cost 100 Complete minute. With the help of electronic controls, water is pumped from the wells, purified through a process called airation, pH balanced, mixed with chlorine and stored in one of two ground level storage tanks at the plant. Three elevated storage tanks located throughout the city send electronic signals back to the plant when water is needed on the lines. "We keep our elevated storage tanks fairly full," says Chapman. "First of all, the more water in the tank, the better your pressure is out on the system.

Secondly, it gives you immediate availability in case of a major fire." Federal regulations require constant testing and sampling of the city's water by the state Health Department, but Chapman notes that "in the three years I've been here, we haven't had one to come back." The city services about 5,400 connections with a total of 18,000 consumers. Geological Survey tells us, the city of McComb should be in good shape," says Ronnie Lindsey, the city's director of public works. Adds Gross: "If you ever had some large industrial users who put a real high demand on water, the picture may change. But I would say there's enough water there, even with moderate industrial growth, to support the demand." LINDSEY AND Chapman also take pride in the city's water plant, which benefitted from $1.5 million in renovations and repairs from 1985-87. Among other things, the city: Replaced worn-out water lines.

Drilled two new wells, bringing the total to six. Installed a elevated storage tank at the hospital. "It upgraded not so much the quantity, but the quality of the water," says Lindsey. The city's six wells run from 580 to 610 feet deep and the plant has a pumping capacity of 5,800 gallons a 0S5T Seeing the forest for the trees is what our business is all about! We manufacture a Since 1939 product from raw A Full Line of Heavy-Duty Trailers materials. Our IKK 1' I lnV7 CV 'r resource for this product is a natural, replenishable resource.

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