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<div class="ginput_container ginput_container_textarea"><textarea name="input_3" id="input_1_3" class="textarea large" aria-invalid="false" rows="10" cols="50">Chairman Christi Craddick
Commissioner Wayne Christian
Commissioner Jim Wright
Dear Commissioners:
As a concerned Texan, I am writing to strongly urge you to update and strengthen the regulations surrounding oilfield waste disposal under Statewide Rule 8. Current practices can cause significant and irreparable harm to our health, environment, wildlife, and communities. Reserve pits are often located dangerously close to groundwater, posing severe risks to both human health and our state's most vital natural resource. Many fellow Texans are not notified nor allowed to consent before oilfield waste is buried on their property, ignoring their property rights and leaving them exposed to unexpected environmental damage and greatly reducing the value of their land.
The Railroad Commission of Texas has publicly stated your responsibility to protect our state's resources by applying critical updates to these outdated regulations. The proposed changes to Statewide Rule 8 should include:
1. Requiring Landowner Consent: Ensure landowners are notified in advance and given the opportunity to grant permission or consent before any waste disposal occurs on their property to protect their rights and prevent unexpected environmental damage. Additionally, this gives them the right to refuse on-site disposal since other more responsible disposal options are widely available.
2. Enhancing Groundwater Protection: Mandate that reserve pits be lined and equipped with leak detection and groundwater monitoring systems, similar to the standards used for commercial operations, to prevent toxic chemicals from contaminating our drinking water.
3. Implementing Better Waste Management Practices: Adopt safer practices, such as closed-loop systems operators are already successfully using in other states, to minimize the environmental risks associated with oilfield waste disposal and protect our land and water.
It is time for Texas to lead once again, not New Mexico and Louisiana, and set a higher standard that protects our environment, communities, and industry for future generations from the dangers of outdated and flawed waste disposal practices.
I urge you to act now and strengthen the proposed updates to Statewide Rule 8.
Respectfully,</textarea></div>
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</form>Text Content
Skip to content DON’T WASTE TEXAS! Tell the Railroad Commission of Texas and other elected officials you don’t want your land used as a dump. The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC), the government agency responsible for overseeing oil and gas waste disposal, has decided not to adopt changes to existing waste management rules on private land. But it’s not too late for your voice to be heard. Your land is a precious resource that must be protected to keep it viable for future use and generations, and it is your right to determine what happens on your land. Oil and gas operators are allowed to dig a hole on your land the size of an Olympic-sized pool, dump their waste in it, and leave it there forever. AND THEY DON’T HAVE TO GET YOUR PERMISSION TO DO IT! Reserve pits—open pits used to dispose of drilling waste—pose a significant threat to our environment, our health, groundwater and communities. These pits are often unlined, unmonitored, and are located dangerously close to groundwater, posing severe risks to what we hold most dear—our livestock, livelihood, wildlife, and health. TEXAS’ ROBUST OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY CAN CONTINUE TO FLOURISH WITHOUT IGNORING PROPERTY RIGHTS AND COMPROMISING YOUR LAND. WHAT’S HAPPENING? Texas is facing a crisis, and current rules must change now! Over the next 30 years, inadequate regulations will have allowed for toxic waste accumulations and unprotected reserve pits to destroy more than 575 square miles of land. * Massive Waste Accumulation: Since 2014, Texas has dumped over 252,000 acre-feet of waste disposed on land—enough to cover Houston’s inner loop four feet deep. * Dangerous Reserve Pits Harm Air Quality and Wildlife: Reserve pits are left open for up to a year or longer after drilling operations end, allowing hazardous chemicals to seep into the ground and volatize into the atmosphere and the air we breathe. These pits are filled with toxic drilling fluids, oil or produced water, diesel, mineral oil, and various chemicals like barium sulfate, benzene and lignosulfonates. Pits also contain high levels of chlorides, which inhibits grass and vegetation regrowth. Unfortunately, birds and other wildlife often mistake these pits for bodies of freshwater, leading to their entrapment and death. * Weak Regulations Risk Groundwater Quality: Current regulations allow for waste disposal without proper safeguards such as liners, leak detection, or groundwater monitoring. Shockingly, reserve pits can be located close to groundwater without requiring a liner/barrier, putting our drinking water at serious risk. WHY DOES THIS MATTER? Current regulations disregard landowners’ rights and endanger the community by “looking the other way” when toxic leaks from oilfield operations occur. Over the years, millions of gallons of contaminated water have seeped into, and polluted groundwater, yet landowners are left without proper protections for their property. * Health and Environmental Risks: The potential leakage of toxic chemicals from reserve pits into soil and water leads to significant health risks for nearby communities. In the past decade, over 10,000 reported spills from oil and gas operations have released more than 148 million gallons of produced water into Texas’ groundwater. (Inside Climate News/The Texas Tribune). * Limited Landowner Rights: The current rules do not require landowners to be notified or give consent before oilfield waste is disposed of on their property. Your property rights are ignored, and you have no control over the potential environmental damage to your land, which could greatly increase the risk of severe land and water contamination and decrease your land values. THE URGENT NEED FOR UPDATED REGULATIONS The Railroad Commission of Texas has published updates to Statewide Rule 8—the rule governing these practices. This rule has not been significantly updated in over 40 years, despite massive advancements in drilling technology and a drastic increase in the amount of waste generated by the industry. DEMAND STRONGER, REASONABLE PROTECTIONS THAT SAFEGUARD YOUR LAND, WATER, LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE. WHAT’S WRONG WITH THE CURRENT RULE? The outdated regulations under Statewide Rule 8 allow reserve pits to operate with minimal safeguards: * Absence of Landowner Consent: Under the current rule, oil and gas companies are not required to obtain consent from landowners before disposing of waste on their property. This lack of transparency and accountability not only impinges on your property rights but also places landowners at risk of unexpected environmental damage and reduction in value of your land. * No Engineering Standards: Reserve pits, which handle 70-80% of all drilling waste in Texas, lack the basic protections required of commercial pits that are used for permanent off-site disposal and are engineered with stringent protective measures. Reserve pits are often unlined, do not have leak detection systems, and do not require groundwater monitoring. * Inadequate Groundwater Protection: Current regulations allow for waste disposal without proper safeguards such as liners, leak detection, or groundwater monitoring. Shockingly, reserve pits can be located close to groundwater without requiring a liner/barrier, putting our drinking water at serious risk. WHAT SHOULD BE DONE? The proposed updates to Statewide Rule 8 do not protect Texas land, landowners, or groundwater. Our water, property, livestock, and wildlife deserve better. The updates need to include essential reforms that would: * Require Landowner Consent: Landowners should have the right to be notified in advance and either given the opportunity to consent or refuse the disposal of waste on their property (off-site commercial methods of disposal are available for operators). This would ensure transparency and protect property rights, allowing landowners to make informed decisions about the use of their land. * Enhance Groundwater Protection: The new rules should require reserve pits to be lined and equipped with leak detection and groundwater monitoring systems, similar to the standards used for commercial pits. These measures are critical for preventing toxic chemicals from seeping into our groundwater. * Implement Safer Waste Management Practices: The industry has successfully adopted more responsible practices in many other states that minimize environmental risks. Texas should follow suit by mandating these best practices to reduce the impact of oilfield waste on our land and water. Don’t Texans deserve the protections New Mexico and Louisiana have already adopted? THERE’S A BETTER WAY THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY HAS THE TECHNOLOGY AND CAPABILITY TO HANDLE WASTE MUCH SAFER AND MORE RESPONSIBLY. THROUGH BETTER WASTE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES, WE CAN PROTECT OUR COMMUNITIES, WILDLIFE, AND NATURAL RESOURCES WHILE STILL SUPPORTING THE INDUSTRY’S GROWTH. TAKE ACTION The RRC is currently taking public comment on the published rule, and they need to hear from you. Urge the RRC to update Statewide Rule 8 to strengthen rules on oilfield waste disposal. You must act today and demand better protection from the Railroad Commission of Texas and other elected officials. Fill-out the letter below to automatically submit your public comments to the Railroad Commission. Who Represents Me? Date(Required) MM slash DD slash YYYY Please customize below if needed Chairman Christi Craddick Commissioner Wayne Christian Commissioner Jim Wright Dear Commissioners: As a concerned Texan, I am writing to strongly urge you to update and strengthen the regulations surrounding oilfield waste disposal under Statewide Rule 8. Current practices can cause significant and irreparable harm to our health, environment, wildlife, and communities. Reserve pits are often located dangerously close to groundwater, posing severe risks to both human health and our state's most vital natural resource. Many fellow Texans are not notified nor allowed to consent before oilfield waste is buried on their property, ignoring their property rights and leaving them exposed to unexpected environmental damage and greatly reducing the value of their land. The Railroad Commission of Texas has publicly stated your responsibility to protect our state's resources by applying critical updates to these outdated regulations. The proposed changes to Statewide Rule 8 should include: 1. Requiring Landowner Consent: Ensure landowners are notified in advance and given the opportunity to grant permission or consent before any waste disposal occurs on their property to protect their rights and prevent unexpected environmental damage. Additionally, this gives them the right to refuse on-site disposal since other more responsible disposal options are widely available. 2. Enhancing Groundwater Protection: Mandate that reserve pits be lined and equipped with leak detection and groundwater monitoring systems, similar to the standards used for commercial operations, to prevent toxic chemicals from contaminating our drinking water. 3. Implementing Better Waste Management Practices: Adopt safer practices, such as closed-loop systems operators are already successfully using in other states, to minimize the environmental risks associated with oilfield waste disposal and protect our land and water. It is time for Texas to lead once again, not New Mexico and Louisiana, and set a higher standard that protects our environment, communities, and industry for future generations from the dangers of outdated and flawed waste disposal practices. I urge you to act now and strengthen the proposed updates to Statewide Rule 8. Respectfully, Name(Required) First Last Address(Required) Street Address Address Line 2 City State AlabamaAlaskaAmerican SamoaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareDistrict of ColumbiaFloridaGeorgiaGuamHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaNorthern Mariana IslandsOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaPuerto RicoRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahU.S. Virgin IslandsVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyomingArmed Forces AmericasArmed Forces EuropeArmed Forces Pacific ZIP Code Email Notifications