The hot button topic of hydraulic fracturing returns to the Butte County Board of Supervisors Tuesday, as the body considers a proposal that would prohibit the storage or disposal of fracking waste in unincorporated areas.
The proposal would essentially ban the storage or dumping of fracking waste in the county.
The proposal comes after the board in December refused to adopt an ordinance that would have banned hydraulic fracturing in the county. In the earlier debate, the board reasoned that a ban was unnecessary because of a dearth of potential fracking sites, and that any ban would amount to a government assault on private property rights. Concerns about possible industry lawsuits were also raised.
Hydraulic fracturing involves pumping a mix of water, solvents, steam and chemicals into deep underground wells. The pressure shatters rock formations, freeing trapped oil and gas that is then pumped to the surface. Water tainted by various solvents and chemicals also returns to the surface. The preferred solution by industry is to pump that waste water back underground, into other deep wells, referred to as injection wells.
As with hydraulic fracturing itself, concerns have been raised about potential contamination of groundwater. Industry insists the process is entirely safe. The waste and other water from deep underground — potentially containing salts, heavy metals and radioactive material — is pumped back underground to levels far below potable groundwater. Industry claims the two cannot mix. Critics, however, say otherwise. They point to failure rates of well casings and note that containing or treating contaminated groundwater would prove prohibitively expensive.
It’s likely that political polarization over fracking at the national level will impact the debate locally. Discussion of the possible ban by the board is scheduled to begin at 9:45 Tuesday morning.
