New Mexico looking to recycle fracking waste water from oil and gas operations by Adrian Hedden, Sept 12, 2019, Carlsbad Current-Argus
New Mexico lawmakers are upping the urgency in developing technology and regulations to cut back on water waste from the oil and gas industry as the state continues to struggle with increasingly harsh drought conditions and fresh water depletion.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced the formation of a produced water “consortium” intended to research and develop polices related to the treatment, reuse and regulation of produced water, or waste water, generated by hydraulic fracturing.
Traditionally, water contaminated or produced during the fracking process is disposed of via injection wells that pump the water back underground.
Last year, records show more than 42 billion gallons of produced water were generated, high in brine and toxic for human consumption.
The initiative was created as a partnership with the New Mexico Environment Department and New Mexico State University, with a memorandum of understanding signed by both organizations that would stay in effect until Sept. 30, 2022.
The Produced Water Research Consortium will be funded by donations from private companies, non-governmental organizations and state or federal agencies.
“Our state is continuing to take unprecedented steps forward to spur economic investment in furthering the science and technology associated with produced water and its potential treatment and reuse,” [Make citizens and livestock eat and drink the toxic radioactive waste, perhaps with fake lemon/chocolate/strawberry flavourings and corn syrup added to make it palatable/addictive for humans? said NMED Cabinet Secretary James Kenney.
“Through this partnership, science [or industry greed and profit driven propaganda?] will guide our regulatory decision-making with respect to produced water treatment.”
During the last New Mexico legislative session, Lujan Grisham signed House Bill 546, also known as the “Produced Water Act” which added regulations related to the handling and ownership of produced water.
New Mexico Rep. Nathan Small (D-36) said the state law, which he cosponsored, could serve as a guide to the regulations developed by the consortium.
“As New Mexicans, we know water is our most precious natural resource. I sponsored this legislation to save fresh water by clarifying and strengthening the rules for produced water while promoting investment and innovation in treating produced water,” he said.
“I am grateful and excited to see this strong partnership between NMSU and NMED to provide the science we need to safely make decisions on the best ways to utilize recycled and treated produced water.”
Speaker of the House Brian Egolf said the partnership between NMSU and NMED will further bolster the State’s efforts to regulate produced water under HB 546.
“This session, we were proud to pass the Produced Water Act so we can have more transparency and accountability in the treatment and reuse of produced water resulting from oil and gas operations,” Egolf said.
“These important efforts will help New Mexico lead the nation in saving fresh water for future generations.” [Only way to do that, is to ban frac’ing, permanently.]
NMSU Chancellor Dan Arvizu said the University’s work will help fill in gaps in knowledge and allow the state to create better, more informed regulations, and help oil and gas companies treat water for uses outside of the extraction industry. [translation: make us and our loved ones, and our pets/livestock eat and drink it]
“The multidisciplinary research approach that we are proposing is specifically needed to fill existing data gaps [with lies & propaganda to con the people into eating and drinking industy’s toxic waste?] to inform policy decisions,” he said.
“This is particularly true in the domain of produced water, where the understanding of reuse for purposes beyond hydraulic fracturing is lacking. [What a way to set up the brainwashing. Disgusting.] NMSU is excited to be at the very forefront of research in this area.”
U.S. Rep. Xochitl Torres Small (D-NM), a former water lawyer, commended her home state for its efforts to address waste water from oil and gas.
“We can build an energy future that works for all of us by tapping into innovative measures that conserve the water we all need. The Governor’s announcement of the MOU with New Mexico State University and the large private investment will fuel this cutting-edge research,” she said.
“Our nation’s greatest minds can use technology to remove contaminants from produced water, ensure that water meets the highest standard, and helps address the growing scarcity of our most precious resource.” [And get the people conned and desperate enough to drink it, even if still loaded with frac contaminants?]
Pennsylvania can’t inject waste water, so they figured out how to recycle it. Thomas Murphy from Penn State’s Marcellus Center for Outreach and Larry Millar from Aquatech explain how. Nathan J. Fish, Las Cruces Sun-News
NMED, the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department and the Office of the State Engineer are planning several meetings across the state to solicit public input on produced water and water handling, and its potential use outside of oil and gas production.
The first 45 minutes of the meeting will be dedicated to informing the public about produced water and the State agencies’ roles, and will be followed by a question-and-answer session.
A timeline for the drafting of the new regulations was not available.
Permian Basin: State, oil and gas industry question reports of under-reported fracking
“With the volume of produced water that is produced and disposed of each year, it is important to encourage the treatment and reuse of the water over disposal, which has been shown to have unintended consequences,” said Adrienne Sandoval, director of the State’s Oil Conservation Division. [same will happen when our “officials” make us drink and eat it]
“This is an important effort that NMED and EMNRD look forward to tackling.”
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