Fracking waste from Pa., W.Va. going underground in Ohio at increasing rates

Hydraulic fracturing fluids and oil-and-gas waste from Pennsylvania and West Virginia are being injected into Ohio disposal wells at an increasing rate, with a reported 8.16 million barrels of waste from other states found in Ohio in 2012, a 19 percent increase from 2011, Spencer Hunt reports for The Columbus Dispatch. Overall, 14.2 million barrels were injected into Ohio disposal wells in 2012, up 12 percent from 2011. (Dispatch graphic; click on it to enlarge)

Fourteen new disposal wells have been drilled in Ohio since last year, giving the state 191, compared to 63 in West Virginia and seven in Pennsylvania, Hunt reports. "There also is little that state officials can do to keep out-of-state waste from Ohio wells. Federal commerce protections forbid one state from imposing tariffs or bans on legally shipped commodities from other states."

Teresa Mills, fracking coordinator for the Buckeye Forest Council, told Hunt, “I think we’ve been the sacrifice zone for the oil and gas industry long enough. How much can we take before there are more earthquakes and before (drinking water) wells are contaminated?” State officials said the wells are safe. They also say there was a 5 percent decrease in waste injections during the first three months of 2013, compared to the same period last year. (Read more)