Clean Water Action works to protect water, health, climate and communities from oil and gas while pushing for the transition to a clean energy economy. We work to secure the strongest possible protections to limit the impacts of oil and gas development and to end the special treatment for the fossil fuel industry at the local, state, and national levels.
Clean Water Currents Spring 2016
In this issue: Putting Drinking Water First; EPA and Congress Take Action; Curbing Climate Pollution from the Oil and Gas Industry Now, Not Later; New Methane Standards in Pennsylvania; Aliso Canyon and Lost Hills: Symptons of a Broken System; and more.
Aquifer Exemptions: Sacrificing Groundwater for Oil and Gas Production
The Aquifer Exemption program in the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Underground Injection Control (UIC) program allows certain oil and gas and mining activity to occur in groundwater that would otherwise be protected as a drinking water source.
Fracking Threatens Drinking Water
The US Environmental Protection Agency “...found specific instances where one or more of these mechanisms led to impacts on drinking water resources, including contamination of drinking water wells.”
The Environmental Risks and Oversight of Enhanced Oil Recovery in the United States
Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) is the most common oil recovery practice in the U.S., accounting for an estimated 60% of domestic crude oil production. EOR involves the injection of fluids underground to increase the flow of oil and gas to the surface. Despite its prevalence, EOR is largely unknown to the public, poses threats to groundwater, and lacks adequate oversight from state and federal regulators.
