The Railroad Commission of Texas(RRC) said in a newnoticethat it will use the minor permit process under the commission’s Statewide Rule 8 (Water Protection) to consider applications for permits to recycle treated domestic wastewater and waste streams from mobile drinking water systems at drill sites. An RRC minor permit will be required for surface application, such as dust suppression for drill pads or roads and for controlled (non-atomized) irrigation, for treated fluids. A minor permit will also be required for downhole uses of treated domestic wastewater. No RRC permit is required if wastewater from a mobile drinking water treatment system is used downhole as make-up water for drilling fluid after surface casing for a well has been set through the base of usable quality water. No permit is required for recycling mobile drinking wastewater for use as make-up water for cement and for make-up water for hydraulic fracturing fluid. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has jurisdiction over the treatment of water that will be used for drinking water, other potable uses, and potable delivery. TCEQ also has jurisdiction over mobile potable water treatment units operated at drill sites, such as mobile drinking water treatment systems and over the transportation of domestic waste and wastewater.
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Articles from Water
Wyoming Water-Gas Wells Study Draws U.S. EPA Criticism
Strong concerns in recent years regarding natural gas drilling possibly contaminating local water supplies for the small town of Pavillion, WY, resurfaced recently as a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regional office fired criticism at a Wyoming study last year that concluded gas development activity, including hydraulic fracturing (fracking), had nothing to do with local water problems.
MarkWest Concludes Cleanup After Spill at Mobley Complex in West Virginia
MarkWest Energy Partners LP said this week that a month-long effort to clean up a spill of heat transfer oil from its Mobley Processing Facility in Wetzel County, WV, has been completed.
EPA Science Panel Fine Tunes Concerns Over Fracking, Drinking Water Study
For the second time in less than six weeks, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Science Advisory Board (SAB) has released a draft report that tweaks its landmark assessment last year that hydraulic fracturing (fracking) poses no “widespread, systemic impacts” to drinking water.
Antero Midstream Plans to Construct Landfill For $275M Oil/Gas Wastewater Facility
Antero Midstream Partners LP last week filed a permit application with the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection to construct a landfill near its proposed 60,000 barrel/day wastewater treatment complex in Doddridge County.
Obama Vetoes Attempt to Block Controversial Clean Water Rule
President Obama vetoed a Congressional resolution disapproving of his administration’s plan to rewrite the controversial Clean Water Rule (CWR) on Tuesday.
Groups Tell EPA Texas Oversight Too Weak to Be Trusted
Two environmental groups are petitioning the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to strip Texas regulators of some oversight responsibilities that were delegated under the U.S. Clean Air and Clean Water acts.
House Joins Senate in Blocking Controversial Clean Water Rule
Lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives, along mostly partisan lines, joined their Senate colleagues on Wednesday in passing a resolution disapproving of the Obama administration’s plan to rewrite the controversial Clean Water Rule (CWR).
EPA Science Review Panel Questions Conclusion of Study on Fracking, Drinking Water
The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Science Advisory Board (SAB) has taken issue with EPA’s conclusion in last year’s landmark report that found hydraulic fracturing (fracking) has had no “widespread, systemic impacts” to drinking water, opening the door for renewed public debate on the subject.
Data Indicates Fewer Small Earthquakes in Oklahoma in Second Half of 2015
Actions taken by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) to mitigate earthquakes, coupled with a possible decline in the state’s oil and gas production for 2015, may have contributed to a slight decline in the number of small temblors to hit Oklahoma during the second half of the year, according to the Oklahoma Geological Survey (OGS).
