Produced Water: Boiling Down The Issues

1. Produced Water: Boiling Down
The Issues
Sebree & Tintera, LLC.
1611 West Ave,
Austin, Texas 78701
Suite 300
John Tintera P.G. #325
johnjamestintera@gmail.com

2. Conundrum: A paradoxical,
insoluble, or difficult problem; a dilemma
 How do you determine the Cost vs.
Benefit ...
 When the Perception and Facts are in
dispute?

3. Perception vs Fact
Let’s look at the Perception, or
Conventional Wisdom of the main
three groups regarding PW:
 Public
 Industry
 Regulators

11. God Bless America
Texas

12. Texas Production
 400,000,000 BO per year
 8 TCF Gas per year
 450,000 existing wellbores
 Over 1,000,000 wells drilled since early
1900’s.
 20,000 directional wells hydrofractured
 No “proven” groundwater
contamination from hydrofracturing

18. PW: The Issues & Arguments
Science – Legal - Policy
 Hydrologic Cycle/Climate Change
 Infrastructure
 Seismic Risk
 Sinkholes and subsidence
 Cleanup/Toxicity
 Eminent Domain
 State vs. Federal vs. Local Authority
 RCRA and the Regulatory Framework
 Surface Estate vs. Mineral Ownership
 Over -regulation vs. Under- regulation
 Politics

19. Hydrologic Cycle
Perception: once fresh water is converted to frac fluid, flowed back as produced water,
and disposed of, it is gone forever.

20. Climate Change
perception : produced water is a by-product of dirty energy

21. Infrastructure; Roads &
Haulers (perception: PW is poorly managed)

22. Seismic

23. Sinkholes and Subsidence
perception: removing fluids like produced water from under the
ground causes subsidence, pumping fluids back underground
causes sinkholes

24. Cleanup: How Toxic is Produced Water & Who Pays?

25. Eminent Domain:
politicians and regulators can’t ignore this...

26. Federal vs. State vs. Local Authority
“Can’t we all just get along?”

27. RCRA & and the Regulatory Framework
The Holy Grail

28. Surface Estate vs. Mineral Ownership
Hard boiled issue #1, serious disconnect between groups. This is a
global concern.

29. Over -regulation vs. Under- regulation:
Hard boiled issue #2, “to kill or not to kill, that is the question”

30. Politics & Polarization:
Hard boiled issue #3, A World-wide phenomenon that can not be
solved solely by science.

31. 1 + 2 = 3
 If you don’t solve #1 (surface vs. mineral, or “who
benefits?”),
 And you can’t solve #2 (the “over-under” of good
regulation),
 You get problem #3 (political problems that require a
political solution).

34. Produced Water: Boiling Down
The Issues
Sebree & Tintera, LLC.
1611 West Ave,
Austin, Texas 78701
Suite 300
John Tintera P.G. #325
johnjamestintera@gmail.com