One study cannot answer every question about water pollution risks from oil and gas drilling, nor should it be expected to. But as my colleague Nichole Saunders pointed out, the oft-quoted statement of EPA’s water study – that it found no evidence of “widespread, systemic impacts on drinking water sources”– implied to some that activities related to hydraulic fracturing had been declared risk-free.
About 50 percent of the nation’s residents source their fresh water supply from groundwater wells, which have deteriorated throughout the U.S. over the past decade. For shallow wells, severe drought conditions have gradually depleted groundwater levels.
The U.S. EPA’s recently released Preliminary 2016 Effluent Guidelines Program Plan indicates the industries and pollutants that the agency has its eyes on for potential future regulation.
Last year the EPA implemented new regulations entitled “Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases.” The new regulations called for certain facilities emitting 25,000 metric tons or more per year of specified GHG’s to provide an annual report of their actual GHG emissions.
Refineries are among the major consumers of water that has both process and non-process origins. The average refinery requires 2.5 gallons of water for every gallon of crude oil processed. Depending on the type of crude oil, composition of condensate and treatment processes, the characteristics of refinery wastewater varies widely. The design and operation of modern refinery wastewater treatment plants are challenging and are driven by technology. This article will highlight the most common types of waste streams in a refinery and suitable wastewater treatment strategies.
Speaking on the state of the challenging water/wastewater treatment market — hampered in recent years by slow municipal growth — Heiner Markhoff, a leading voice in the water treatment technology market, sees “light at the end of the tunnel.” Find out why in this exclusive Q&A with Water Online.
Pumps are all too frequently one of the most overlooked and abused pieces of equipment in process automation, yet nothing moves without them and a process becomes inefficient when they don’t operate properly or completely shutdown.
There are few topics more controversial these days than hydraulic fracturing ("fracking"). While the debate rages on as to whether fracking poses a risk to water quality, a new desalination technique addresses two other environmental concerns: water scarcity and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Developed by researchers at the University of British Columbia (UBC), the breakthrough technology uses excess carbon dioxide created in the fracking process to desalinate the process water, making it available for water reuse. It also generates chemicals — hydrochloric acid and carbonate salts — that are valuable for many industrial applications.
It’s been two months since EPA released its much anticipated draft report on hydraulic fracturing, and organizations like ours are busy preparing their official comments, which are due at the end of August. But based on what we have learned so far and what has been written in the media, it’s important to spend some time on what the report said — and didn’t say — and what it all means.
A $15 million federal, solar desalination funding program seeks to foster a world where utilities and industrial operations have easier access to fresh water.
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