The opportunity for the Oil & Gas industry for better management of wastewater aka produced water

The opportunity for the Oil & Gas industry for better management of wastewater aka produced water The oil & gas industry generates over 150 billion barrels of produced water each year. Management of produced water by either treatment and/or disposal costs more than $75 billion is annually. This wastewater accounts for 98% of the entire waste stream of the industry. New technology, such as that offered by IX Power Clean Water, makes treating produced water for reuse a viable option. For 11 to 24 cents a barrel operators can have water free of harmful contaminants so that water can be re-used in oil & gas operations, for dusty road treatment,

for livestock and irrigation, and discharged into surface water bodies. This makes a lot more sense (and cents) than paying $2.50 to $10 a barrel to truck and inject produced water. Learn more HERE.

Groundwater Protection Council report evaluates reuse potential for water produced by oil, gas wells

Groundwater Protection Council report evaluates reuse potential for water produced by oil, gas wells

Oil and gas operators produce about 900 billion gallons of water from their wells per year, with about 55% of that disposed of by those operators. But in an environment where a changing climate and growing populations are putting pressure on available freshwater supplies, operators and regulators alike are rethinking the economics and long-term sustainability of traditional produced-water management practices. A report issued Monday by the Groundwater Protection Council evaluates those trends, promotes potential ways produced water might be appropriately reused and examines challenges associated with that goal. A key question that must be answered, the report states, is whether reusing produced water in some parts of the country could be the right thing to do in cases where its beneficial use would outweigh costs to manage, treat, store and move produced water around. Read the entire story in the Oklahoman HERE.

Waste to Water: Oil and gas industry looks to mitigate water waste during boom

Waste to Water: Oil and gas industry looks to mitigate water waste during boom

A 2018 study conducted by Duke University titled “The Intensification of the Water Footprint of Hydraulic Fracturing,” reported the fresh water used nationally in fracking increased to 770 percent from 2011 to 2016, while wastewater volumes within the first year of production grew by 550 percent.  In the Permian Basin, production showed the greatest increase of any basin, 290 percent from 2011 to 2016, according to the study. “Water use and wastewater production are two of the chief environmental concerns voiced about hydraulic fracturing,” Vengosh wrote in the study. “Yet until now we’ve had only a fragmented and incomplete understanding of how much water is actually being used, and how much wastewater is being produced.” As more is understood about the scale of the problem, the oil and gas industry’s attention has become focused on solutions beyond traditional disposal wells, including recycling and reuse. Read more of Adrian Hedden's story in the Carlsbad Current Argus HERE.