Bartolotta pushes for treated mine water usage in wells
State Sen. Camera Bartolotta introduced legislation this week that aims to further reduce natural gas companies’ reliance on fresh water from rivers and streams.
Bartolotta, R-Carroll Township, said the bill would clear up “convoluted” language and allow drilling companies to use treated mine water in fracking operations, which require the use of millions of gallons of water.
Bartolotta said many companies could benefit from using treated water from coal mines, but the law does not clearly state which industry is liable for the treated water.
Her bill stipulates that natural gas drilling companies would be liable once they take possession of the water. The coal companies would be responsible for treating the water and disclosing the process they used to drillers.
Bartolotta said the treated water is “not something that you or I would want dumped into a river, lake or stream,” but the goal is to protect those water sources from having a substantial amount of water withdrawn from them in order to frack a well.
The state Department of Environmental Protection uses a formula to monitor the withdrawal of fresh water from state waterways. Bartolotta said she has not heard of any issues with that process, but prefers a more conservation-friendly alternative.
Many drilling companies have also been using a closed-loop water recycling process, which cuts down on fresh water withdrawals.
The Marcellus Shale Coalition, which represents several hundred natural gas drilling companies, said the legislation is practical.
“While we’re still reviewing this legislation, commonsense approaches like this reflect innovative solutions that shale producers are leveraging across the Commonwealth aimed at enhancing our environment,” said Dave Spigelmyer, MSC president.