DEP Sets Meeting With Industry On Marcellus Shale Drilling Wastewater Policy April 15

The Department of Environmental Protection announced an April 15 meeting of the Marcellus Shale Wastewater Partnership to be held at 1:00 p.m. in the Auditorium of the Rachel Carson Building in Harrisburg. (formal notice)

 

The Department will present a Permitting Strategy for High Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Wastewater Discharges (Permitting Strategy). The goal of this permitting strategy is that new sources of High TDS wastewaters will be prohibited from Pennsylvaniafs waters by January 2011. To achieve this goal, the Department proposes to amend Chapter 95 – relating to wastewater treatment requirements – to establish new effluent standards.

 

In addition, to assure the protection and attainment of all designated stream uses, the Department proposes to develop new numeric water quality criteria for TDS and Chlorides, and amend Chapter 93 – Water Quality Standards – to include these criteria. Amendments to Chapters 93 and 95 will be completed prior to January of 2011 through separate regulatory processes. Those processes will allow for public participation and comment.

 

DEP said it would be posting meeting handouts online.