The president of the North Dakota Association of Counties says infrastructure is a common concern for county governments – not only in the oil patch.
Doug Graupe is from Divide County. He says his county is the fifth largest oil producing county in North Dakota – and infrastructure – meaning roads and bridges – is a real concern.
"We have a lot of salt water being hauled by trucks in our county," said Graupe. "For every barrel of oil produced in Divide County, there's two barrels of salt water. That creates a lot of traffic."
Graupe says his county also has about 100 gravel pits.
"A lot of that gravel is leaving the county," said Graupe. "So we have all this traffic related to oil, and not just the production in our county."
Graupe says counties outside the oil patch are also experiencing problems with roads.
"Truck size is increasing," said Graupe. "Statewide, that's a big issue -- trying to keep up with county roads that weren't built to the standards they need to be for today's traffic."
Graupe says the Legislature has done a lot to help – but it isn’t enough.
