The Williams County Planning and Zoning Commission on an unspecified date approved a conditional use permit to construct a freshwater holding pond in the Southeast of Section 17, Township 159 North, Range 100 West, in Blue Ridge Township. The permit would allow a pond to store water for use in oil well production; the applicant’s representative described a lined, fenced pond with associated pumping equipment and access from North Dakota Highway 85.

The permit matters because the pond is intended to support nearby oilfield operations by staging fresh water, and the commission approved the request after hearing staff comments and without public opposition. Commission records show the parcel is approximately 155 acres in total, though the pond would be contained within the northeast-southeast quarter of that section.

Staff described the proposed pond as roughly 49.9 acre-feet in capacity, approximately 500 by 235 feet with a maximum slope of 3-to-1, lined with a plastic liner and surrounded by a fence and seeded berms for erosion control. A riser would connect the pond to an existing oil pad where a diesel-driven pump and mobile transfer equipment would be staged. The applicant said the source of the water would be the Blue Ridge Water Industrial Water Well and that access is off North Dakota Highway 85. No public commenters spoke at the hearing.

Commissioner Brett Brothers moved to approve the conditional use permit with staff comments; the motion was seconded and carried by roll call. The record shows no recorded conditions beyond the standard staff comments and the need for any required permits or inspections; final siting and technical approvals, including any state or county permitting for the pump and approach improvements, remain the responsibility of the applicant. The commission did not adopt additional restrictions at the meeting.

Details clarified during the staff presentation and commission discussion: the pond footprint sits inside a larger 155-acre parcel; the pond liner, fencing, seeded berms and diesel pumping equipment were described by staff and the applicant as planned features; the purpose stated by the applicant is storage of fresh water to be used in oil production operations. The permit is approved subject to staff comments and any standard county permitting requirements.