Nearly 200 residents from Montgomery County, Texas located north of Houston attended a Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) hearing on November 19 to protest against a proposed nonhazardous wastewater injection well http://hcnonline.com/articles/2008/11/24/woodlands_villager/news/wv-n_texcom.txt.

The bottom line from the hearing is TCEQ commissioners refused to grant the permit (pending additional data) sought by TexCom Gulf Disposal to inject nonhazardous wastewater into an existing well located in an old oilfield. The commissioners agreed with Montgomery County authorities that TexCom did not fulfill its burden of proof to show the injection wells are safe from infiltrating the underground aquifer, which Montgomery County residents depend on for drinking water. So far so good for the opponents – they have delayed the progress of TexCom and their efforts to secure a permit until the company can submit additional testing that will ensure the soundness of the wells.

Community associations, city councils, and county commissions representing a combined 250,000 residents joined local and state elected officials in strong opposition against TexCom’s permit. Opponents say the injection wells could contaminate the underlying aquifer and leak to the surface through hundreds of abandoned oil wells in the area. The company maintains that waste won’t end up in the drinking water.

The opposition (www.stopthetoxicwells.com) was successful in characterizing the nonhazardous water-based liquid waste as “toxic” and coordinated a tremendous grassroots initiative that captured the attention of the community and engaged the active participation of the public with multiple “calls to action”. Four chartered buses brought 100 residents to Austin for the hearing.

We may have a final decision by the TCEQ commissioners regarding the permit by mid-2009.