TCEQ Underground Injection Control Program Update

1. TCEQ Underground Injection Control Program Update TCEQ Environmental Conference and Trade Fair May 7, 2014 Lorrie Council, P.G., Manager UIC Permits Section Radioactive Materials Division Office of Waste

2. UIC Presentations 2014 Trade Fair • The UIC presentations for this year’s environmental conference address current activities and issues: • San Antonio Water System – update on desalination and deep-well disposal of concentrate (preceding talk in this track) • Status of Two UIC Rulemakings related to legislation from the 83rd Texas Legislature • Update on TCEQ’s Project for EPA UIC Dataflow • Class I Well Operation, Maintenance and Reporting Requirements – presented by Region Office staff • Class I Well Pre-injection Unit Registration Application Revisions and Renewal Issues

3. UIC Program Basics • TCEQ’s UIC Program regulates injection for protection of fresh water and underground sources of drinking water (USDWs) • Statutes provide the basis for the UIC Program: • Texas Injection Well Act (Chapter 27 of Texas Water Code) • Federal Safe Drinking Water Act • Federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (for injection of hazardous waste) • Rules provide the regulatory framework for UIC: • Title 30, Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 331 • Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, Parts 144-147

4. UIC Program Basics – Six Classes of Injection Wells Established • Class I: inject nonhazardous industrial and municipal waste or hazardous and radioactive wastes below USDWs – TCEQ regulates • Class II: inject fluids related to oil and gas production (disposal and enhanced recovery) and liquid hydrocarbons for underground storage – Texas Railroad Commission (TRC) regulates • Class III: inject fluids for in situ recovery of minerals (solution mining) – TCEQ regulates most Class III wells, though TRC regulates brine mining wells and solution mining exploration wells (pre-mining phase) • Class IV: inject hazardous and/or radioactive fluids into or above USDWs (generally prohibited, unless authorized for remediation of Superfund or RCRA sites) – TCEQ regulates • Class V: miscellaneous injection wells not in other well classes that generally inject into or above USDWs – TCEQ regulates most Class V wells (those not specifically in jurisdiction of TRC) • Class VI: inject CO2 below USDWs for geologic sequestration – TRC would regulate most of these wells – none in Texas (EPA has program primacy)

5. TCEQ 2013 Well Inventory by Class

6. Standard for Protection of USDWs and Fresh Water • Texas rules addressing this standard are found in 30TAC§331.5 Prevention of Pollution: • (a) No permit or authorization by rule shall be allowed where an injection well causes or allows the movement of fluid that would result in the pollution of an underground source of drinking water. A permit or authorization by rule shall include terms and conditions reasonably necessary to protect fresh water from pollution • Federal Rules addressing this standard are found in 40 CFR §144.12 Prohibition of Movement of Fluid Into Underground Sources of Drinking Water, which states that movement of fluid containing any contaminant into a USDW is prohibited if the presence of that contaminant may cause a violation of a primary drinking water standard or otherwise adversely affect the health of persons.

7. TCEQ UIC Program:Primary Program Elements • Well Permitting and Authorization • Participation in Hearings • Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement • Participation in the Legislative Process, Rulemaking, Program Development and Revision • Programmatic Interface and Reporting to US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) • Provision of UIC Program Materials to the Public and Regulated Community • Participation in Ground Water Protection Council • Response to Public Inquiries

8. TCEQ UIC Program Information • TCEQ maintains UIC Program information on the Internet: http://www.tceq.texas.gov/permitting/waste_permits/uic_permits/uic.html • information and requirements by well class • application forms • rules, fee requirements, financial assurance • approved Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) • program contacts • brief list of wells regulated by TRC • link to UIC permit application database search

9. Timelines for UIC Permits and Authorizations • Class I Individual Permits: new permits, renewals, amendments, pre-injection unit registrations (390 days if no public comment) • Class I General Permit:For injection of nonhazardous desalination concentrate and drinking water treatment residuals (~90 days) • Class III: In situ uranium mining area permits and production area authorizations (PAAs) (390 days if no public comment) • Class V: authorizations for most require submittal of data and written approval of authorization before construction and operation (~60 days) – some types of wells may require more information and take longer to authorize (e.g., high-volume discharges, desalination concentrate disposal, aquifer recharge, aquifer storage and recovery)

10. UIC Compliance Monitoring • Requires coordination of various TCEQ divisions: • For Class I Wells: Monitoring and other reports required by permit or rule must be sent by permittee to Office of Compliance & Enforcement (OCE) Region Offices (Region 1 or 14, based on location of well) • For Class I Wells: OCE Region Office UIC Inspectors handle annual Mechanical Integrity Tests (MITs) (inspection and approval of annual tests), Well Workovers (approval of plans and reports), and annual reports; Office of Waste/RMD UIC Permits Section witnesses initial MITs, reviews and approves well completion reports, and coordinates well plugging/abandonment • For Class I Wells: Routine inspections and complaint response performed by staff of the respective TCEQ Regional Offices in which the wells are located • For Class III In Situ Uranium Mining Operations: Compliance with permit terms and routine investigations are coordinated through OCE Critical Infrastructure Division

11. TCEQ UIC Program Current Activity • Permit and Authorization Applications • All applications for UIC permits and authorizations are maintained on TCEQ’s UIC Internet pages; Class I individual and Class III permit applications were recently updated, so applicants should download these from the TCEQ Internet site to be sure the application form is current • The Class I General Permit was amended and issued 11/19/12; the amended General Permit is posted to the TCEQ’s UIC Internet pages • EPA’s UIC Inspector Training April 2014 • EPA held a 4-day UIC inspector training and required its own inspectors to take the course and pass a test to become certified inspectors; EPA opened the training to primacy state programs and TCEQ had 25+ personnel attend the training via video teleconference

12. TCEQ UIC Program Current Activity • Class I Injection Well Workovers and Modifications • Over the last few years, TCEQ has responded to increasing numbers of requests for Class I injection well workovers and other modifications; close to 50% of permitted, installed Class I wells are over 30 years in age (typical design well life), so workover requests are not unexpected; most workovers require related permit modifications • Class I Injection Wells Located in Oil Production Areas • Pressure build-up observed in injection zone formations in East Texas due to increased disposal volumes in Class II injection wells • Reservoir pressure build-up has affected a hazardous waste disposal well operation, requiring coordination among TCEQ, TRC, and EPA Region 6 (w.r.t. the no-migration petition), and efforts to resolve this issue are on-going

13. TCEQ UIC Program Current Activity • Class III In Situ Uranium Mining • TCEQ is currently reviewing and processing renewal applications for area mine permits at three URI mines • TCEQ reviewing and processing amendment application and new Production Area Authorization for STMV • April 2014 TCEQ received an application from Signal Equities for a new area permit for an in situ uranium mine • EPA is evaluating TCEQ’s UIC Program revision request for an aquifer exemption at Mesteña’s Alta Mesa Mine • TCEQ initiated early coordination in late 2013 with EPA and has provided preliminary information related to a future UIC Program Revision request for an expanded aquifer exemption at STMV’s La Palangaña Mine • January 2014 EPA approved the UIC Program Revision requested for an expanded aquifer exemption at the URI Rosita mine (requested by TCEQ in 2010)

14. TCEQ UIC Program Current Activity • UIC Database and Dataflow to EPA • TCEQ is wrapping up Phase 1 of a project to flow electronic Class I injection well information from its databases to EPA • This has required considerable data mapping and database cleanup to facilitate a mid-May 2014 dataflow • Class V Injection Well Authorizations and Inventory • TCEQ received and processed authorization applications for >2,500 Class V injection wells in 2013 (mostly remediation wells) • TCEQ is currently reviewing files for remediation-related authorizations (60% of wells) to determine injection status, update files, and process revocations for closed facilities • This is being done to refine the authorized and inventoried Class V wells in advance of future phases of the EPA dataflow project

15. TCEQ UIC Program Future Anticipated Trends • Injection Wells Related to Water Supply and Management • Requests for information over the last year point to increased interest in use of brackish groundwater requiring treatment which would produce a concentrate waste stream that may be disposed through injection wells (Class I and Class V wells) • Recent requests for information also indicate increasing interest in use of aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) as a water management technique (Class V wells) • Deep Injection Wells For Industrial and Municipal Disposal • TCEQ has received several workover requests and other modifications for Class I disposal wells over the last few years; ~50% of permitted, installed Class I wells are over 30 years old; few new Class I well applications are being submitted and the agency expects the trend of repairing or retrofitting older wells to continue

16. TCEQ UIC Program Summary • TCEQ’s UIC Program is very active, with review and processing of new, renewal, and amendment applications for Class I and III UIC permits plus processing of Class V related authorization applications • TCEQ UIC Program implementation is a team effort, with permitting and compliance monitoring functions conducted by different offices and divisions; 25+ TCEQ staff members participated in EPA’s UIC inspector training in April 2014 • Interoffice coordination has increased for Class I permit issues such as workover requests and for investigation follow-up support to Region Offices • Permitting and regulatory activity related to Class III in situ uranium mines has increased over the last few years and this activity level is expected to continue to process applications and assess restoration status of production area authorizations • Database requirements have increased and the UIC Program is actively working to update and verify permit and authorization information in support of future dataflow project phases (Class III and Class V)

17. Questions? ?

18. UIC Program Contact Information Lorrie Council, PG, Manager UIC Permits Section Radioactive Materials Division, Office of Waste Phone: 512-239-6461, Fax: 512-239-6464 Email: lorrie.council@tceq.texas.gov http://www.tceq.texas.gov http://www.tceq.texas.gov/permitting/waste_permits/uic_permits/uic.html