Reported oil and gas spills in Wyoming went down both in number and by volume in 2022 as compared to 2021. There were 487 spills reported in 2022, containing 1,153,473 gallons of oil and drilling-related materials. That’s 40 percent less volume than was reported spilled in 2021 and 23 percent fewer spills. 

Forty percent of all spills occurred in just two counties—Campbell and Converse, which are located in the oil-rich Powder River Basin—and were caused by just five companies. 

Oil production in Wyoming in 2022 was up eight percent compared to 2021. Around 40 percent less liquid was reported spilled and the total number of spills was down 23 percent, indicating possible improvement in spill reduction by operators in Wyoming.

Notably, Carbon Creek Energy reported a 198 percent increase in the amount of drilling-related liquid it spilled in 2022 as compared to 2021. Carbon Creek does not report its annual profit information, however its parent company, US Realm, filed for bankruptcy in October 2019 and has since received significant tax and royalty relief.

A few notes about the data

Since spill data is self-reported by the oil and gas companies responsible for the spills, the true number of spills and volume of spilled material in Wyoming is likely higher than those included in this report. Finally, the methodology used to calculate this year’s report differs from that of past years’ reports. Therefore, data from this year’s report should not be used in combination with data from prior years.