Wastewater 47 - Marcellus Drilling News

Altela Set to Open 2 New Frack Wastewater Plants in PA

July 3, 2012July 3, 2012

Two new fracking wastewater treatment plants will come online in Pennsylvania on August 1st—one in Clarion County, the other in McKean County. As MDN reported back in November, Altela Inc. will use a distillation process to purify fracking wastewater, a “green” alternative instead of chemically treating the water (see this MDN story).

The new news is that Altela is almost ready to open two new plants using their green technology.

Ohio Passes New Drilling Law, Gov. Kasich Will Sign

May 25, 2012May 25, 2012

Ohio’s new shale oil and gas drilling legislation (SB 315) has now passed both the House (73-19) and the Senate (21-8) and is on the way to Gov. John Kasich’s desk for his signature, which it will receive. The bill as passed is 220 pages long and wide-ranging in its scope, covering not only shale oil and gas extraction, but renewable energy, water conservation, and wastewater treatment. The bill reportedly contains some of the strictest rules in the nation for hydraulic fracturing.

So what’s in the bill? MDN doubts you want to read through 220 pages to find out. Embedded below is the 70-page summary overview version. However, here’s a few brief highlights of what’s in it:

Bradford County, PA Gets New Shale Wastewater Treatment Plant

May 18, 2012March 7, 2019

Eureka Resources announced yesterday it will build a brand new “world-class” shale wastewater treatment facility in Bradford County, PA (near Towanda, PA). The first phase of the construction will be complete by the end of this year, and the second phase by the end of next year. According to Eureka, the facility will reduce the need to dispose of concentrated brine, or salty wastewater, that normally is disposed of via injection wells. When completed, the facility will operate 24/7 and employ 16 full-time employees.

From the Eureka press release:

Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Statewide OH | Wastewater

Ohio Dem Wants Feds to Investigate Injection Wells

May 15, 2012May 15, 2012

Here’s a new twist on the “fracking contaminates ground water supplies” argument that MDN has not seen before…

Frack Wastewater Treatment Plant in Blossburg, PA Expands

May 14, 2012May 14, 2012

Hydro-Recovery operates a shale gas fracking wastewater treatment facility in Blossburg (Tioga County), PA. It’s just announced a $15 million expansion of the plant with plans to add an additional 20-25 employees and ramp up to 24/7 operations. Construction is set to start as soon as permits are received on a “crystalizer and six 500,000 gallon storage tanks.”

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Statewide PA | Wastewater

NRDC Releases Report Critical of PA Fracking Wastewater

May 11, 2012May 11, 2012

Advocating for stricter government controls, the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) earlier this week released a “comprehensive review” of how fracking wastewater is handled in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale with recommendations for how it can be handled better. The NRDC says that the current methods of wastewater disposal are not adequate to protect drinking water supplies, and present a risk to the health of both humans and animals. A copy of the report is embedded below.

From the NRDC press release:

Industrial Complex near Columbiana, OH Gets Shale Makeover

May 9, 2012May 9, 2012

The former National Refractories complex just outside Columbiana, OH is getting a shale gas makeover. Owner Jerry Stoneburner says the 300,000 square foot facility that sits on 100 acres will become both a shale gas wastewater treatment center and a transfer point to load railroad cars with crude oil and condensate being produced in the Marcellus and Utica Shale.

Hydraulic Fracturing | Industrywide Issues | New York | Statewide NY | Wastewater

Anti-Drillers Target Conventional NatGas Drilling in NY

May 4, 2012May 4, 2012

crosshairs The anti-drillers in New York are not content to block horizontal drilling. They increasingly have turned their attention to conventional, vertical natural gas drilling as their target, trying to shut down or otherwise harass an industry that has been safely operating in the state for decades.

The latest attempt is a sham “report” by the anti-drilling group Environmental Advocates of New York. This new “report” says wastewater disposal from conventional, vertical wells is too lax in the state. They want conventional drilling wastewater to be classified as a hazardous substance with cradle-to-grave tracking of all water used in any oil and gas drilling in the state—which is just another way of strangling an industry that has been an important part of the state’s economy for the past 100+ years.

From the AP:

Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA | Wastewater

PennFuture Targets Entire Oil & Gas Industry in PA

April 16, 2012April 16, 2012

Anti-drilling “environmental” group PennFuture’s newly appointed President and CEO George Jugovic, formerly the PA Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) southwest regional director, is wasting no time in going after the oil and gas industry. Current DEP Secretary Michael Krancer got the drilling industry to stop using municipal sewage treatment plants to process Marcellus drilling wastewater without so much as an edict or lawsuit. Conventional (non-Marcellus) gas drillers have now come under the scrutiny by PennFuture and other anti-drilling groups. They want conventional drillers to stop processing their drilling wastewater via treatment plants that discharge into rivers and waterways.

EXCO Resources Fined $160K by EPA for Injection Well Incident

April 16, 2012April 16, 2012

EXCO Resources was fined $160,000 last week by the federal Environmental Protection Agency for an incident that occurred at an injection well last year in western Pennsylvania.

Earthquakes | Industrywide Issues | Mahoning County | Ohio | Wastewater

ODNR Finds Youngstown Injection Well Caused Earthquakes

March 12, 2012March 12, 2012

Youngstown earthquake locations A preliminary report released by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) on Friday concludes that a dozen earthquakes in northeastern Ohio were “almost certainly” induced by injection of gas-drilling wastewater (a full copy of the report is embedded below). The evidence is overwhelming: The earthquakes did not begin until three months after the injection well went online; the quakes were all clustered around the well bore; and a new fault has been discovered in the bedrock where the wastewater was being injected. Taken together, the ODNR is as sure as it can get that the injection well was causing the earthquakes.

Therefore, the ODNR has issued new regulations for injection wells, what state officials are calling among the toughest rules in the nation. From the ODNR press release:

Auburn, NY Rescinds Ban on Gas Drilling Wastewater

March 9, 2012March 9, 2012

Wiser heads have prevailed in the upstate New York Finger Lakes community of Auburn—the Auburn city council has voted to once again allow the municipal sewage treatment plant to accept gas drilling wastewater.

As you may recall, MDN told you about protesters who descended on the tiny city of Auburn last year to protest not Marcellus wastewater being treated at the sewage plant, but local conventional gas drilling wastewater—something that had been going on for 15 years with no adverse effects (see this MDN story). In the rush to condemn fracking and prevent horizontal drilling in the state, ignorant protesters have fallen into the trap of protesting all gas drilling in the state—drilling that has gone on for decades.

NY Republican Senator Introduces Fracking Wastewater Bill

March 9, 2012March 9, 2012

On the issue of hydraulic fracturing and shale gas drilling, the New York Republican party keeps shooting itself in the head. The latest example is a ridiculous bill just introduced into the state legislature by Long Island Republican Senator Jack Martins, 7th Senate District:

Industrywide Issues | Ohio | Regulation | Statewide OH | Wastewater

OH Bill Tightens Regulation of Wastewater Injection Wells

March 9, 2012March 9, 2012

Ohio State Rep. Jay Goyal introduced legislation yesterday to tighten regulation of injection wells used for disposing Marcellus and Utica Shale wastewater. Key provisions of the bill include:

Steubenville Selling 700K Gallons of Water/Day to Chesapeake

February 23, 2012February 22, 2012

The city of Steubenville in Jefferson County, Ohio has struck a deal to sell Chesapeake Energy treated wastewater, untreated river water and potable water—700,000 gallons of it a day for five years.

Energy Services | GreenHunter Resources | Industrywide Issues | Wastewater

GreenHunter Buys 3 Marcellus/Utica Wastewater Injection Wells

February 22, 2012February 22, 2012

GreenHunter Water has just purchased three currently operating wastewater injection wells in Ohio and Kentucky for $8.8 million that they will use to dispose of Marcellus and Utica Shale wastewater.

From the GreenHunter press release: