Texas bill would require drillers to notify landowners before burying toxic waste
Texas lawmakers are weighing new rules that would require oil and gas companies to notify and get permission from landowners before burying toxic drilling waste on private property, addressing long-standing complaints over health and environmental risks.
Martha Pskowski reports for Inside Climate News.
In short:
- House Bill 4572 would strengthen oversight of reserve pits — earthen pits used to bury oilfield waste — by requiring the Railroad Commission to establish groundwater protections and landowner consent rules.
- Supporters say the bill would protect private property and drinking water from carcinogens and pollutants found in modern fracking waste, including benzene and arsenic.
- The Railroad Commission’s updated regulations, effective July 1, require registration of pit locations but do not include landowner notification, prompting lawmakers to push for legislative action before the session ends June 2.
Key quote:
“This bill will afford landowners the opportunity to make an informed decision and to know when their interests are at risk.”
— Penny Morales Shaw, Texas state representative
Why this matters:
Fracking has transformed the oil and gas industry, but its waste stream has grown more chemically complex. Reserve pits, the shallow basins where companies bury leftover drilling fluids and solids, often lie hidden beneath private land with little to no oversight. That waste may contain a toxic stew: drilling muds rich in heavy metals, fracking lubricants spiked with carcinogens, and emulsifiers that can leach into groundwater. In Texas, the problem is especially acute in regions like the Permian Basin, where oil wells and ranches sit side by side. When toxic waste is buried without landowner knowledge or groundwater monitoring, it raises the risk of long-term contamination, threatening cattle, crops, and drinking water.
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