Hunter Knighton started his career at Chesapeake as a lease operator before becoming a water foreman in our Haynesville operations. We asked Hunter to share more about this new role and his life outside of work.
Your role as water foreman is new in our Haynesville operations. What are your responsibilities and what does a typical day look like?
As a water foreman, my main focus is overseeing saltwater transportation and disposal throughout our Haynesville operations. The role was created to have a central point of contact for all things related to produced water management. Having this centralized position allows us to take a big picture approach to how we manage water. This means finding efficiencies in our contractor list, strengthening our relationships and having consistency with truck availability.
A typical day for me involves a lot of communication with our contractors to ensure everything is running smoothly and everyone has what they need to do their jobs properly. Aside from working with contractors, I attend meetings, track and report data and coordinate various other aspects of saltwater procedures.
I have been working in this current position for about four months now, and we are beginning to get to the point where we have a good handle on saltwater procedures. My next focus will likely be on water transfer projects for frac operations.
You started your career at Chesapeake as a lease operator. How do you use your knowledge as a former lease operator in your new role?
The transition was pretty smooth, and my experience as a lease operator has definitely proven to be valuable. As a lease operator, I gained skills in leading special projects, which I’ve been able to incorporate into my current position. Additionally, my operating experience and knowledge of the area’s wells have been really beneficial, particularly in understanding which wells produce the most and require more attention.
You grew up in the same area as our Sligo field office. What do you think are the advantages of having local people working in our field operations?
I was born in Arkansas but grew up in Louisiana, since I was 6 or 7 years old. This is home for me and my family. It’s home for many of us — most of our guys grew up around here. We know the community and our landowners, many of them have my phone number and call me if there’s a question.
We also all really care about the environment, even more so since it’s our home. We have a strong sense of responsibility for this community — we’re invested and involved in it. For example, one of my goals is trying to reduce truck traffic and noise for our neighbors by installing pipelines and exploring water reuse.
What originally interested you about the oil and gas industry?
I grew up in the industry since my dad worked for a company that constructed pad sites. I’ve always looked up to my dad and seeing him be successful in this industry sparked an interest in me. I’m glad we get to share in our careers.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
I love spending time with my family, my wife and two daughters, 8 and 10 years old. We enjoy camping together, spending time outdoors and cooking. I also like to hunt and fish.
