The Department of Environmental Protection published notice in the April 18 PA Bulletin of proposed changes and renewal of the Residual Waste General Permit WMGR123 related to the processing, transfer and beneficial use of oil and gas liquid waste to develop or hydraulically fracture an oil and gas well. (formal notice)
Among the changes DEP highlighted are--
-- Defining the terms ''processing,'' ''transfer'' and ''storage'' as the terms pertain to the general permit.
-- Changing the application requirement for coverage under WMGR123 from a registration to a determination of applicability. This change is consistent with the application requirements for most general permits issued by the Department's Bureau of Waste Management and provides the general public with an opportunity to comment on WMGR123 operations that may be sited in their municipality. The change from a registration to a determination of applicability does not impact the information that is required to be submitted to the Department as part of an application for coverage under WMGR123, or impact operations that have been previously permitted based upon a registration application.
-- Clarifying the sampling and analysis requirements based upon the type of WMGR123 operation (facilities actively processing oil and gas liquid waste prior to beneficial use as opposed to facilities that are only utilizing temporary storage without additional processing before beneficial use).
-- Revising sampling and analysis requirements to allow WMGR123 operations that are processing oil and gas liquid waste to demonstrate, with a statistical demonstration, that a reduced sampling frequency and reduced parameter list are justified.
-- Revising conditions pertaining to frequency of inspections and cessation of operations for WMGR123 operations located on permitted oil and gas well pads.
-- Revising conditions pertaining to processing or transfer of oil and gas liquid waste to include ''storage'' for clarity.
-- Reorganizing the general permit for clarity and ease of use, such as utilizing the standard format seen in other general permits for consistency purposes and incorporating standard permit conditions, like a requirement for the submission of an annual operating report.
Comments are being accepted through June 16 through DEP’s eComment webpage by email to ecomment@pa.gov or by regular mail. Questions should be directed to: Chris Solloway, DEP Bureau of Waste Management, by sending email to: csolloway@pa.gov or by calling 717-787-7381.
[Posted: April 17, 2020] PA Environment Digest
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