On the final day of testimony at the fracking waste reuse hearing New Mexico Oil and Gas Association (NMOGA) witnesses tried to argue that New Mexico's environmental regulations are holding them back, and threatened that if they can't expand their reuse experimentation outside the oil field then they will go elsewhere - to Texas, but a simple question from Commissioner Zemlick exposed the lie at the heart of that argument. Commissioner Zemlick asked essentially "Isn't it true that under the jurisdiction of the OCD these technologies and processes could be tested as long as the [produced] water is used or disposed of within the industry. Is that true?," and the answer from NMOGA witness D'Antonio, a water technology developer with a financial interest in the outcome of this case, was simply "Yes. That's my read on it." He protested only that lots of people, people like him, really desire to expand their operations across the state.
The claimed necessity for this rule in order to conduct necessary research was proved false.
As we have stated from the start of this case, we need a rule, but not this NMED/Governor proposed rule. We need a rule that prohibits discharge of treated or untreated fracking waste, prohibits any federal discharge permits that would undermine our water quality, and prohibits off oil-field demonstration and industrial projects. New Energy Economy will put forward a revision of the rule accordingly, and argue in its final brief that if any off oil-field research projects are authorized, they must be limited in number and scale, and require a stringent permit process that is transparent and protective of New Mexico people, land and water.
With the exception of one honest expert who confirmed the necessity for stringent permits to protect the public, the credibility of NMOGA witnesses was undermined by their admissions of financial or professional interest in the outcome of the case. Their offhand dismissal of the scientifically affirmed dangers posed by fracking waste and the significant concerns of the public extended to an attempt to discredit the peer reviewed research of Dr. Pei Xu, an Associate Director of the Produced Water Research Consortium, and her finding that the treatment process itself likely led to the creation of new toxic byproducts harmful to human health.
Parties to the case will submit closing briefs by October 18th and the Hearing Examiner will compile a Statement of Facts for review by the Water Quality Control Commissioners as they consider what rule should be adopted. We expect there will be a decision in December or January.
New Energy Economy is grateful to our experts who spoke eloquently and authoritatively against the dangers of fracking waste reuse, to all the intervenors who joined us in opposing the dangerous provisions in the proposed rule, to the NM No False Solutions coalition and the organizations that joined the Defend NM Water campaign to raise public awareness of the hearing and the threat to our health and water, to those who volunteered their time to make calls, organize events, write to news publications, and especially to those members of the public who took time from their busy lives, conquered their public speaking phobias, and showed up to protect our water. Your testimony was eloquent, persuasive and critical to the decision that the Commissioners will make!
We include below the public comment of State Senator Harold Pope, who took time to come before the Commission in person to ask for a rule that protects our most precious, life giving resource:
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