Wastewater

Indiana County | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Wastewater

PA Frack Wastewater Plant Closes, Loses Permit to Operate
August 7, 2013August 7, 2013

Although companies like GreenHunter Water can’t get enough fracking wastewater facilities online fast enough to meet demand from Marcellus and Utica drillers, it appears not everyone has the same level of success when it comes to operating such facilities. The PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) has pulled the operating permit for a frack wastewater treatment facility in Indiana County, PA. Seems the facility operated “sporadically” in July and August of last year before stopping operation in September. The owner, Aquatic Synthesis, ran into financial difficulties (i.e. bankruptcy).

Problem is, there’s still a million gallons of wastewater at the plant that need to be disposed of. Who will pay for that?…
Read More “PA Frack Wastewater Plant Closes, Loses Permit to Operate”
Butler County | Energy Services | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Reserve Environmental Services | Wastewater

RES Breaks Ground for Wastewater Treatment Plant in Butler, PA
August 6, 2013August 6, 2013

Reserved Environmental Services, otherwise known as RES Water, is a Pennsylvania-based shale drilling wastewater treatment processor. RES’ claim to fame is that they build and operate zero liquid discharge facilities–100% of treated wastewater is returned to the field for re-use in fracking and drilling.

RES has just broken ground on its second wastewater treatment plant–in Penn Township (Butler County), PA. The new $2.5 million facility is projected to be operational later this year. According to RES president Andy Kicinski, more RES treatment plants are on the way in the Marcellus region…
Read More “RES Breaks Ground for Wastewater Treatment Plant in Butler, PA”
Energy Services | Heckmann | Industrywide Issues | Wastewater

Wastewater Company Nuverra: Too Much Success in Marcellus/Utica
July 31, 2013July 31, 2013

Nuverra Environmental Solutions (formerly Heckmann), a company that recycles and otherwise disposes of shale drilling wastewater and leftover rock and dirt from drilling, decided to release the “bad news” ahead of an earnings call on August 8 that 2Q13 profits will not meet expectations. They’ll show earnings of a measly $165.5 million. Nuverra has a growing presence in the Marcellus and Utica Shale region.

So what were the challenges in 2Q13 that caused Nuverra to falter financially? Believe it or not, one of the reasons for their “poor” financial showing is stronger than predicted growth for their business in the Marcellus/Utica. The strong growth forced them to parcel out work to subcontractors, which costs more than having your own employees do the work. Nuverra says they’re now ramping up and expanding their own people in the Marcellus/Utica…
Read More “Wastewater Company Nuverra: Too Much Success in Marcellus/Utica”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Regulation | Wastewater

New CLEANER Act for Drilling Waste has a Dirty Purpose
July 26, 2013July 26, 2013

Pennsylvania Congressman Matthew Cartwright, Democrat – 17th District, has just introduced a new bill in the House of Representatives: the Closing Loopholes and Ending Arbitrary and Needless Evasion of Regulations (CLEANER) Act. The way Democrats euphomize the titles of their proposed bills is funny–torturing the language to make it sound like something it’s not. We’d like to propose our own legislation: Stop Torturing Us People In Democrat Idiotic Talkative Yammering (STUPIDITY).

This latest travesty–the CLEANER Act–perpetuates the lie that somehow oil and gas drilling have been inappropriately “exempted” from federal laws that apply to other industries. In this case, anti-drillers maintain oil and gas drilling have been inappropriately exempted from the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976 via legislation passed in 1980. To put oil and gas drilling under RCRA’s purview now would be to reclassify drilling waste as toxic waste (similar to nuclear waste), requiring very strict tracking and disposal regulations that go far beyond the actual hazard posed by oil and gas drilling waste. The CLEANER bill is unnecessary and its purpose is to make drilling uneconomic–i.e. to stop it.
Read More “New CLEANER Act for Drilling Waste has a Dirty Purpose”
Anti-Drilling/Fossil Fuel | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA | Warren County | Wastewater

“Enviro” Group Sues Wastewater Company, Alleges Illegal Dumping
July 19, 2013July 19, 2013

Clean Water Action (CWA), an anti-drilling, anti-fossil fuel 501(c)(4) non-profit group is using money from the war chest of its big liberal donors to sue a legitimate, small, private business. In a press release yesterday, CWA announced they’re filing a lawsuit against Waste Treatment Corporation, alleging WTC is illegally discharging oil and gas drilling wastewater into the Allegheny River in violation of Pennsylvania state regulations. But wait–isn’t it the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) job to monitor and punish wrongdoers who break the rules? Yep. But that doesn’t stop out-of-control groups like the CWA.

WTC says they are operating according to the letter of the law and have violated no DEP regulations…
Read More ““Enviro” Group Sues Wastewater Company, Alleges Illegal Dumping”
Energy Services | Harrison County | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Somerset Regional Water | Wastewater

SRWR to Open New Frack Wastewater Plant in Cadiz, OH
July 18, 2013July 18, 2013

Officials from Somerset Regional Water Resources (SRWR), a Pennsylvania-based frack wastewater recycling operator, recently spoke to a meeting of the Cadiz (OH) Business Association about their plans to start up a wastewater recycling facility in the Cadiz (Harrison County, OH) area next month, bringing more than 40 new jobs to the area.

SRWR is based in Tunkhannock, PA. They began operations in 2008 and now have over 120 employees. Begun as a water trucking operation for oil and gas drilling companies, SRWR has expanded to include a full offering of well site services and frack wastewater recycling facilities…
Read More “SRWR to Open New Frack Wastewater Plant in Cadiz, OH”
Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Portage County | Statewide OH | Wastewater

Wastewater Injection Wells in Ohio – Comprehensive Update
July 15, 2013

On Sunday, the Akron Beacon Journal ran an excellent article on injection wells in Ohio. Their findings: Portage County disposed of more frack wastewater via injection wells than any other county in Ohio last year–disposing of 2.3 million barrels of brine and frack fluid wastewater. Brine, you may recall, is naturally occurring water from the depths that comes out of drilled wells long after the fracking fluid has been pumped out. Brine is very “salty” with a high concentration of minerals.

What may be a surprising statistic for some: Nearly two-thirds of the wastewater disposed of in Ohio wells was from out of state–most of that from Marcellus drilling in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Here’s part of the article, which details a list of Ohio counties and how much wastewater they disposed of via injection wells:
Read More “Wastewater Injection Wells in Ohio – Comprehensive Update”
Energy Services | GreenHunter Resources | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Wastewater | West Virginia

Wheeling Delays Vote Again on GreenHunter Wastewater Facility
July 15, 2013July 15, 2013

It looks like the Wheeling Water Warriors will live to fight for another month. The Wheeling (WV) Planning Commission was due to finally vote to allow GreenHunter Water to build a frack wastewater recycling plant at a facility along the Ohio River in Wheeling. After some initial bumps, it seemed as if things were going along fine and that the Commission would vote last week (see GreenHunter’s Wheeling Frack Wastewater Plant Up for Vote July 8). However, the Commission has once again tabled the vote–this time until August 12th.

The latest machinations from Wheeling and what’s holding up the vote this time:
Read More “Wheeling Delays Vote Again on GreenHunter Wastewater Facility”
Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Portage County | Research | Utica Shale | Wastewater

OH Village’s Extensive Water Tests Show No Impacts from Drilling
July 8, 2013July 8, 2013

Good news for residents of Garrettsville (Portage County), OH residents: Your drinking water has been and continues to be just fine. The village board commissioned an extensive water testing program to keep an eye on private water wells on the outskirts of Garretsville as a way of spotting any water contamination problems that may happen before they reach the village’s drinking water supplies.

Village leaders were concerned that nearby Utica Shale drilling and a plethora of frack wastewater injection wells in Portage County may lead to contamination of the village’s water aquifer. Nope. Nothing of the sort has happened, once again proving that shale drilling and injection wells are safe for water, contrary to the bleating of fictional movies like Gasland 2 and anti-drilling protesters like Yoko Ono…
Read More “OH Village’s Extensive Water Tests Show No Impacts from Drilling”
Energy Services | GreenHunter Resources | Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Washington County (OH) | Wastewater

GreenHunter Frack Wastewater Plant Opens in Washington County, OH
July 1, 2013July 1, 2013

Seems like GreenHunter Water is on fire in the Marcellus/Utica. Perhaps that’s a poor choice of metaphor! Here’s what we mean: GreenHunter is building fracking wastewater facilities at a prodigious rate in the northeast. Just a few weeks ago GreenHunter cut the ribbon on a new frack wastewater injection well in Meigs County, Ohio (see GreenHunter Opens Brine Injection Well in Meigs County, OH). Next week the Wheeling City Council will vote on whether or not to allow GreenHunter to build and operate a wastewater recycling facility on the Ohio River in the city (see GreenHunter’s Wheeling Frack Wastewater Plant Up for Vote July 8).

In the meantime, another GreenHunter frack wastewater recycling plant started operations last week–in Washington County, OH:
Read More “GreenHunter Frack Wastewater Plant Opens in Washington County, OH”
Energy Services | GreenHunter Resources | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Wastewater | West Virginia

GreenHunter’s Wheeling Frack Wastewater Plant Up for Vote July 8
June 28, 2013June 28, 2013

As MDN told you in early June, the Wheeling (WV) City Council delayed a vote to allow GreenHunter Water to begin construction of a new fracking wastewater recycling facility at a site in the Warwood section of Wheeling–along the Ohio River (see Wheeling Delays Vote on GreenHunter’s Frack Wastewater Plant). After an initial misstep by GreenHunter in not pre-briefing City Council members and the resulting bumpy relationship with some of them, it seems GreenHunter worked hard to address their concerns (see Wheeling Councilwoman Softens Stand Against Frack Wastewater Plant).

The Warwood wastewater recycling facility will once again be on City Council’s docket for a vote at their July 8 meeting:
Read More “GreenHunter’s Wheeling Frack Wastewater Plant Up for Vote July 8”
Crime | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Mahoning County | Ohio | Wastewater

OH Wastewater Dumper D&L Energy Gets Business Death Sentence
June 26, 2013June 26, 2013

The sad story of D&L Energy, a Youngstown, OH operator of several wastewater injection wells, has come to an ignominious end. It’s owner was (is?) Ben Lupo, who also owns sister company Hardrock Excavating, operating both companies under the D&L Energy Group umbrella. Starting last September, Lupo instructed a Hardrock employee to dump untreated fracking wastewater down a sewer drain that emptied into the Mahoning River. Lupo and the driver were found out earlier this year (see Youngstown Business Dumped >200K Gal of Untreated Wastewater).

The Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) promptly shut down both D&L Energy and Hardrock in February (see OH Company Dumping Frack Wastewater in Drain May Appeal Shut-Down). The shut-down led to a filing for bankruptcy in a desperate attempt to re-open and keep D&L afloat. Lupo appealed the ODNR ruling claiming D&L Energy is separate from Hardrock and just because he behaved badly at Hardrock does not mean D&L should be punished too. The Ohio Oil & Gas Commission (OOGC) has now ruled on that appeal…
Read More “OH Wastewater Dumper D&L Energy Gets Business Death Sentence”
Crime | Industrywide Issues | Litigation | Mahoning County | Ohio | Wastewater

Youngstown Democrat Gets “Return to Sender” Over D&L Letters
June 26, 2013June 26, 2013

An interesting story related to the business death sentence handed down to D&L Energy by the Ohio Oil & Gas Commission (see today’s related story). State Rep. Robert Hagan (Democrat from Youngstown) tried to improperly influence the OOGC, technically a court body, by sending letters directly to members ruling on the D&L appeal. He requested that they reject the appeal. The OOGC didn’t fall for it and instead sent the letters on to the OOGC attorney and the attorney for D&L. That is, Hagan got a “return to sender” from the OOGC, along with a rap on the knuckles. He was (eventually) cleared of wrongdoing by the Ohio Ethics Commission.

Oh, this is the same Rep. Robert Hagan who wants to more than double the oil and gas drilling tax in Ohio (see Youngstown Democrat State Rep Wants to Hike Severance Tax to 7.5%). Here’s the D&L/Hagan kerfuffle:
Read More “Youngstown Democrat Gets “Return to Sender” Over D&L Letters”
Fayette County | Industrywide Issues | Wastewater | West Virginia

Possible Problem at WV Frack Wastewater Injection Well
June 12, 2013June 12, 2013

West Virginia regulators are investigating whether or not an injection well in Fayette County used for fracking wastewater is discharging some of that wastewater into Wolf Creek. Apparently there have been past issues with the well…
Read More “Possible Problem at WV Frack Wastewater Injection Well”
Energy Services | GreenHunter Resources | Industrywide Issues | Marshall County | Wastewater | West Virginia

Wheeling Delays Vote on GreenHunter’s Frack Wastewater Plant
June 11, 2013June 11, 2013

Wheeling, WV City Council decided at last night’s meeting to delay a vote for at least another month that would allow GreenHunter Water to begin construction of a new fracking wastewater recycling facility in the city at a site along the Ohio River (for background, see GreenHunter Buys Barge Terminal in Wheeling for Frack Wastewater). City Council members asked some pointed questions of GreenHunter last night.

The proceedings (and outcome) from last night’s meeting:
Read More “Wheeling Delays Vote on GreenHunter’s Frack Wastewater Plant”
Energy Services | GreenHunter Resources | Industrywide Issues | Meigs County | Ohio | Regulation | Wastewater

GreenHunter Opens Brine Injection Well in Meigs County, OH
June 7, 2013June 7, 2013

GreenHunter Water’s newest brine injection well has begun operation in Meigs County, Ohio. The well is located close to the Ohio River and GreenHunter hopes to, at some point, receive brine wastewater via barge and pump it directly from barges to the well for disposal, reducing truck trips. GreenHunter now has eight active saltwater (brine) injection wells in the Utica/Marcellus region, five of which are located in Ohio.

Management says they are excited to “be the first to implement a barging program…” However, as far as we know, the Coast Guard (and the White House and a variety of other agencies) have still not given the green light for barge shipments of fracking wastewater, which includes brine (see The Long (Federal) Road to Approve GreenHunter’s Barge Terminals).
Read More “GreenHunter Opens Brine Injection Well in Meigs County, OH”