EAB Decision Could Raise Bar For Permitting Fracking Wastewater Wells

EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB) has found that the agency's permit review of two wastewater disposal wells for a Pennsylvania-based hydraulic fracturing operation is inadequate to show that drinking water supplies would be protected, setting a high bar for permitting such wells in the gas-rich Marcellus Shale region. The board's June 28 finding in In Re: Bear Lake Properties, LLC is significant because disposal to underground injection wells is EPA and industry's preferred option for dealing with the massive volumes...