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EPA Publishes Final Rule Banning Fracking Wastewater From Public Treatment Facilities

On Monday, the EPA published a final rule ensuring wastewater from hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling cannot be sent to public wastewater treatment facilities.  Currently, hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling operators do not send wastewater to public treatment facilities.  However, operators have in the past.  Although operators of onshore oil and gas extraction facilities have been required to comply with direct pollutant discharge regulations since 1979, there were previously no regulations that applied to indirect discharges of pollutants.  The EPA believes this rule closes the regulatory gap and guarantees the industry practice of not sending fracking wastewater to public treatment facilities will continue.  The final rule can be found here.