Under rules adopted by the Texas Railroad Commission (Commission) on March 26, 2013, effective April 15, 2013, Texas hydraulic fracturing operators may recycle fracturing fluids on their own leased or owned land used for fracturing activities or may transfer the fluids for recycling on the land of another operator without a permit. According to the… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Disposal Wells
Subscribe to Disposal Wells RSS FeedFederal Charges Filed for Ohio Drilling Waste Release; Ohio Legislation Proposes Increased Penalties
Posted in Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, Legislative, Ohio DNR, Ohio EPA, WaterEarly last week, we covered the response of Ohio regulators to an alleged release of hydraulic fracturing waste into a Youngstown, Ohio area tributary by Hard Rock Excavating (Hard Rock), an affiliate of oil and gas player D&L Energy Group (D&L). In addition to the state regulatory enforcement measures against Hard Rock and D&L, the U.S…. Continue Reading
Discharge of Drilling Waste in Ohio Triggers Civil and Criminal Enforcement Actions; Heightens Scrutiny of State Regulatory Practices
Posted in Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, Ohio DNR, Ohio EPA, WaterA release of approximately 40,000 gallons of oil and gas operations waste into a Youngstown, Ohio area storm drain flowing into the Mahoning River is igniting a call for tighter regulatory oversight and more transparent emergency response practices by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR). ODNR investigators… Continue Reading
Maryland Governor Proposes $1.5 Million Funding For Hydraulic Fracturing Study
Posted in Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, Legislative, WaterAs we have discussed in prior posts, Maryland has in place a de facto moratorium on shale exploration and drilling. Responding to inquiries about drilling into Marcellus shale formations in western Maryland, in 2011 Governor Martin O’Malley issued an executive order directing state agencies to conduct a comprehensive study of hydraulic fracturing’s short-term, long-term, and cumulative… Continue Reading
Leaked New York Department of Health Report: Hydraulic Fracturing Can Be Safely Conducted
Posted in Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, Legislative, New YorkA previously confidential New York state agency report analyzing the human health impact of high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) operations released to a limited number of media outlets last Thursday concludes that HVHF can be performed safely under the state’s proposed regulations. The leaked February 2012 health assessment is a supplement to the comprehensive Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (SGEIS), a study… Continue Reading
Legislators In Ohio General Assembly Propose Numerous New Shale Bills As Close Of Session Nears
Posted in Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, Land Use, Legislative, Ohio DNR, Tax, WaterThe Ohio General Assembly closes its two-year term later this month. The waning days of the term, falling between the November election and the end of the year, are known as the “lame-duck” session. During this session, legislators have introduced a flurry of bills relating to hydraulic fracturing and shale gas drilling. Many of these… Continue Reading
Research On Flowback Recycling, Wastewater Treatment Commencing In Ohio
Posted in Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, Ohio DNR, Ohio EPA, WaterAs shale drilling sites continue coming online in the Utica Shale region, the demand for alternative means of managing the wastes produced by drilling operations has never been stronger. In response to that demand, significant studies are beginning in Ohio that are designed to tackle these issues. Battelle Memorial Institute recently announced that it is… Continue Reading
New York DEC Releases Draft Hydraulic Fracturing Regulations, Extends Rulemaking Process
Posted in Chemical Disclosure, Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, New York, WaterYesterday the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) filed with the New York Department of State a revised draft of its proposed regulations governing hydraulic fracturing in the state. According to reporting by the New York Daily News and other outlets, DEC faced a deadline of yesterday by which to file the draft rules in order to… Continue Reading
Ohio, Pennsylvania Issue New Injection Well Permits
Posted in Disposal Wells, Hydraulic Fracturing, Ohio DNR, Pennsylvania, WaterIn the past several weeks, state regulators in Ohio and Pennsylvania have begun to approve long-stalled permit applications for proposed disposal wells. The wells, known in regulatory parlance as Class II underground injection wells, could be used to dispose of flowback wastes generated from hydraulically-fractured shale wells. Two weeks ago, the Ohio Department of Natural… Continue Reading
Texas Proposed New Rules Encouraging On-Site Flowback Recycling
Posted in Disposal Wells, Hydraulic Fracturing, WaterThe Texas Railroad Commission on September 28 published amendments to its rules for hydraulic fracturing operations that would allow drillers to recycle water and flowback fluids on-site without needing to obtain a permit. The proposed rules also detail guidelines and permitting requirements for off-site commercial recyclers of flowback fluids. The Railroad Commission is receiving comments… Continue Reading
Ohio EPA Issues Advisory As To Landfilling of Drilling Wastes
Posted in Disposal Wells, Hydraulic Fracturing, Ohio DNR, Ohio EPAOn September 18, 2012, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency’s (OEPA) Division of Materials and Waste Management issued an advisory to Ohio solid waste landfills as to how they should handle wastes associated with hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling. The advisory addresses three types of wastes that in some instances can be disposed of in solid… Continue Reading
Activist Groups Lobby For Local Control of Ohio Shale Operations and Waste Disposal
Posted in Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, Land Use, Legislative, Ohio DNRThroughout Ohio, environmental groups and community activists increasingly are pressing local units of government to enact local “bans” of hydraulic fracturing and deep injection disposal wells that can accept well flowback. For example, on August 2 the Cincinnati City Council voted to bar injection wells associated with the disposal of waste from hydraulic fracturing; Yellow… Continue Reading
Ohio Governor Issues Executive Order Authorizing Deep Injection Well Regulations
Posted in Disposal Wells, Hydraulic Fracturing, Ohio DNRLate yesterday, Ohio Governor John Kasich signed an emergency executive order granting the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) authority to implement new rules for proposed deep injection wells, used to dispose of drilling wastewater (also known as brine) from Marcellus and Utica Shale drilling. Under the order, the chief of ODNR’s division of oil and… Continue Reading
NRC Study: Hydraulic Fracturing Not a Significant Earthquake Risk
Posted in Disposal Wells, Hydraulic Fracturing, Ohio DNROn Friday, June 15, the U.S. National Research Council (NRC) released a report titled Induced Seismicity Potential in Energy Technologies. The report, prepared by Congressional request through the U.S. Department of Energy, analyzes whether a linkage exists between seismic activity and the injection into the earth of fluids related to energy production (e.g., hydraulic fracturing, disposal via… Continue Reading
New York Senate Environmental Committee Chairman Introduces 5 Bills Addressing Wastewater from Hydraulic Fracturing
Posted in Disposal Wells, Hydraulic Fracturing, LegislativeNew York State Senator Mark Grisanti, chairman of the Senate Committee on Environmental Conservation, introduced five bills concerning the disposal of wastewater from the hydraulic fracturing process. As currently drafted, the bills would: Prohibit POTWs from accepting wastewater associated with the exploration, delineation, development, or production of natural gas (Senate Bill 6893); Prohibit the use… Continue Reading
Ohio Senate Bill 315 Proposes Comprehensive Well Regulations
Posted in Disposal Wells, Groundwater, Hydraulic Fracturing, Legislative, Ohio DNROn Thursday, March 22, state Sen. Shannon Jones introduced Senate Bill 315 (SB 315), which mirrors many of the well regulation proposals advanced by the administration of Gov. John Kasich. SB 315 contains numerous provisions concerning the parameters that the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) would need to evaluate in order to issue permits for… Continue Reading
Ohio DNR Report: Youngstown Quakes Linked to Injection Well; Revised Regulations for Brine Disposal Forthcoming
Posted in Disposal WellsOn March 9, 2012, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued a preliminary report summarizing its findings as to the relationship between a series of low-magnitude earthquakes near Youngstown, Ohio (that culminated in a December 31, 2011 4.0-magnitude seismic event) and the operation since late 2010 of a class II deep injection well near a fault… Continue Reading