Although certain environmental officials in the state are working to shift its policy toward the industry, Ohio has quickly become a major center in the treatment of wastewater generated from hydraulic fracturing, Bloomberg reports.

Companies throughout Ohio are currently treating wastewater generated by hydraulic fracturing, a controversial natural gas extraction technique that is more commonly known as fracking. Fracking was developed only within the past decade, but it has helped the U.S. drastically increase its supply of natural gas. In fact, the U.S. is now the world's largest producer of the hydrocarbon as a result of the success of fracking, which is incredibly important to the nation's goal of achieving energy independence.

Still, fracking is exceedingly controversial, as environmental and public health advocates throughout the U.S. have urged lawmakers to issue a moratorium on the practice until scientists can thoroughly investigate whether it can potentially contaminate water sources, among other negative repercussions.

Ohio Republican Governor John Kasich has expressed reservations about the state serving as a major center of fracking wastewater treatment. Still, the state is home to 176 wells constructed deep underground that are designed to hold fracking wastewater. Eighty companies operate the wells, which the state has increasingly approved the construction of over the past decade. Ohio lawmakers approved 29 wells in 2011, according to the news provider.

With such a vast array of storage systems, Ohio has quickly become a major importer of wastewater from other states. A significant amount of all the fracking wastewater generated in Pennsylvania was shipped to Ohio last year, and the state injected more than 511 million gallons into its wells over the same period of time. While fracking wastewater treatment has helped drive tax revenue in a state hard-hit by the recession, opponents have increasingly pressed lawmakers to reconsider environmental and public health when granting licenses.

In an effort to respond to such criticisms, Kasich has proposed new rules that would require fracking companies to list the exact chemical composition of effluent. Moreover, he has also mulled taxing gas and oil drillers in Ohio as much as 4 percent of the market value of what they extract from the ground. The governor contends his stance toward the industry strikes the right balance between free markets and a regulated sector, but critics are pushing for more stringent environmental protections.

Some scientists have called for the use of alum in water treatment and certain nutrient removal chemicals to help improve the effectiveness of wastewater treatment facilities. Others, however, assert the state's current regulatory framework is effective in protecting state residents from potential water contamination issues. With the state's Department of Natural Resources proposing a ban on drilling into deep rock formations, among other bills, the state's laws could shift, a move that could potentially disrupt fracking activity elsewhere in the U.S., expert say.

 

Posted on March 26th, 2012 under Industrial Uses, Wastewater News, Water Conservation News, Water Regulations