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Today, one cannot browse through the environmental news without finding an article touting the environmental hazards arising from, or the economic benefits derived from, hydraulic fracturing (commonly known as "fracking"). On the hazards side, concerns relating to fracking are as broad and diverse as the potential for contamination of drinking water by oil, gas, or fracking fluids; earthquakes induced by fracking activities; and livestock ailments induced by nearby fracking operations. On the benefits side, there are increases in domestic oil and gas production and a reduced reliance on foreign sources of hydrocarbons and energy. This article will not provide a definitive answer as to whether fracking is ultimately "good" or bad" for our society considering all the potential economic and environmental impacts that technology may create. Rather, this article addresses more specific, tangible questions: what are the potential environmental impacts of hydraulic fracturing specifically relating to the wastewater that results from fracking operations, and how should those impacts be addressed under current and developing laws?
One of the primary concerns cited by government, industry, academic, and environmental experts alike relating to fracking is the management of wastewater. Among most of these experts, there is a high degree of consensus that the on-site storage and the disposal of fracking wastewater pose some risk to the quality of surface water and groundwater. These risks relate directly to the chemical constituents in fracking wastewater, originating from the fracking fluids themselves or the composition of naturally occurring produced water associated with oil or gas extraction, and whether or not these chemicals can or do m igrate to surface waters or groundwater aquifers at concentrations significant enough to harm human health or the environment. Another potential risk commonly discussed in association with fracking wastewater, is induced seismicity. However, regulators have indicated that this risk is more accurately associated with oil and gas drilling operations generally and not specifically with fracking. Although disposal by injection may be related to induced seismicity in some circumstances, it is only in connection with deep injection over long periods of time, which is not typically required to dispose of fracking wastewater.
Most of the potential environmental risks associated with fracking wastewater are already regulated to some degree by local, state, and federal agencies. These...