Wyoming regulators are looking into enacting new regulations regarding the bonding of oil and gas wastewater treatment facilities.
Oil and gas wastewater facilities are also known as Commercial Oilfield Waste Disposal Facilities or COWDFs. COWDFs treat wastewater from oil and gas operations in an effort to make the wastewater less harmful to the environment. Currently, in Wyoming COWDFs that are older than 27 years do not have to be bonded. This is because facilities over 27 years old were constructed prior to the rule that required bonding of COWDFs. The result of having unbonded facilities is that the taxpayers are often left with the bill to pay for the cleanup. Cleanup can be costly.
Recently, the state had to clean an oil and gas wastewater facility, and it ended up costing taxpayers a reported $740,000. In addition, the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality has asserted that if the state would have to clean up all of the sites over 27 years old that it would cost taxpayers between $7.2 million and $9.2 million dollars. With the loss of tax revenues, $7-9 million dollars is not something Wyoming is in the position to spend. Lastly, with low oil and gas prices, state regulators worry that more wastewater sites will go out of business. The possibility of wastewater sites going out of business makes the rule change ever more important.
PRBRC Supports Wastewater Rule Change
Powder River Basin Resource Council has expressed concerns regarding the possible contamination that can occur from an abandoned COWDF. Powder River expressed concerns in a 2013 report where they proposed a 7-point plan to protect groundwater from oil and gas development in Wyoming. As a result, Powder River has supported the rule change. Powder River plans to campaign to ensure the state requires older facilities to have sufficient bonds. In Powder River’s view, a sufficient bond would mean a bond that ensures taxpayer dollars are not responsible for cleanup. It is expected that a rule change will likely occur in the coming months.