Proposed TDS Levels Split Enviromentalists, Gas Industry
Washington PA Observer Reporter
11 June 2010
By Christie Campbell, Staff Writer
chriscam@observer-reporter.com
New regulations governing an industry's wastewater discharge into
Pennsylvania's rivers and streams could be enacted by the first of next
year. And while environmentalists say it is a long overdue change,
those on the industry side - especially natural gas extractors -
believe it is a knee-jerk reaction to unfounded fears that drilling
activity is polluting water.
The regulations pending state review call for a 150-foot green buffer
around streams and a reduction in total dissolved solids, which rose to
an all-time high on the Monongahela River in 2008.
Those associated with the gas drilling industry point out that the new
levels are so stringent they exceed TDS levels found in some sports
drinks and bottled mineral water on the market.
"We have to create standards that are workable and make sense," said
Kathryn Klaber, executive director of the Marcellus Shale Coalition, a
group of petroleum producers committed to the development of the
natural gas industry.
Pennsylvania's Independent Regulatory Review Commission will vote
Thursday on the recommendations from the state Department of
Environmental Protection.
However, on Monday the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy
Committee was calling for a two-week extension of the review process to
clear up some ambiguities in the regulations.
In her comments to the IRRC, Klaber notes that the new end-of-pipe
limit the Environmental Quality Board is proposing for TDS (500
milligrams per liter) is unique to Pennsylvania and could put oil and
gas producers at a disadvantage, causing an investment shift to other
states.
She adds that no reliable data equates high-level TDS to health risks
and that the 2008 levels came during drought conditions, not from the
oil and gas industry. TDS is a measure of all elements dissolved in
water and can include carbonates, chlorides, sulfates, nitrates,
sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium. High levels are usually
associated with murky water and a difference in flavor.
Steve Hvodzdovich, program organizer with Clean Water Action's
Pittsburgh office, calls it a long overdue regulation.
"We've been letting natural gas drilling come into our commonwealth
without proper regulations to protect our people and our environment,"
he said.
The proposed change to the state's Clean Streams Law of 1971 - or
Chapter 95 - stem from a historic volume of TDS found in the
Monongahela River in the fall of 2008 that exceeded drinking water
standards. There are 17 water companies that get their water from the
Monongahela between the West Virginia line and Pittsburgh.
Josephine Posti, external affairs specialist for Pennsylvania American
Water, said the company cannot treat for TDS when discharge levels
become high.
"So we have been working closely with DEP to support regulations that
will help enforce keeping those levels low," she said.
The proposal will affect any industry with wastewater discharge high in
TDS such as oil and gas drilling, metal mining, meat-packing plants,
bakeries, beverage processing facilities and others. If they are unable
to meet the new regulations for discharge directly into the stream,
they would be responsible for taking the wastewater to a treatment
plant.
At this point, Hvodzdovich said, there is no local municipal wastewater
treatment facility capable of treating TDS under the proposed
regulations.
Klaber's comments noted that will lead to increased truck traffic and
the use of more energy to treat discharge, leading "to increased
pollution and emissions of greenhouse gases."
DEP estimates it would cost an additional 10 to 25 cents a gallon to
treat the water for discharge.