1. Texas Underground Injection Control Program 2018
TCEQ Environmental Conference & Trade Fair May 16, 2018
Lorrie Council, P.G., Manager, UIC Permits Section
Radioactive Materials Division
Office of Waste
Image Group is TCEQ Logo and Diagram of Class I Injection Wells

2. TCEQ UIC Organization UIC Program Implemented by:
Office of Waste, Radioactive Materials Division (RMD):
Permitting & Authorizations
Class I Well Construction Oversight/Approval
Well Plugging Oversight/Approval
Office of Compliance & Enforcement:
Workover Approvals
Mechanical Integrity Test Oversight
Routine Operations & Reporting
EPA Compliance Related Reporting
Compliance & Enforcement
UIC Class I & III Permitting for In-Situ Uranium Facilities Conducted by RMD’s Radioactive Materials Section
RMD’s UIC Permits Section Focus:
Application Review & Permitting for Class I & V Wells
UIC Programmatic Reporting & Coordination with EPA
UIC Rulemaking & Legislative Bill Analysis
UIC Program Coordination
Image Group is TCEQ Logo and Diagram of Class  I Injection Wells

3. TCEQ UIC Staff Updates
Staffing challenges continue – 2 vacancies currently open in RMD/UIC
Lean staffing requires streamlining of processes & prioritizing assignments
UIC Permits Section Staffing Changes:
Kathryn Hoffman, PE, UIC Engineer, retired May 2017
Carol Dye, PG, UIC Geologist, transferred to UIC July 2017 (formerly in Uranium Group)
Tom Ortiz, PE, UIC Engineer, resigned July 2017 (vacant position)
Andy Trevino, PE, UIC Engineer, joined November 2017
Radioactive Materials Section Staffing Changes:
Maryann Ryan, PG, Uranium Licensing & Permitting Geologist, retired October 2017 (vacant position)

4. TCEQ UIC Inventory by Well Class
A table lists numbers of TCEQ-regulated UIC facilities and wells, as reported by TCEQ to EPA in February 2018, broken down by class of injection well

5. UIC Class I Permit Applications & Permits Issued in 2017
Class I Applications Received
Class I Permits Issued
New Permit 3
Permit Renewal 5 12
Permit Renewal/Major Amend 1
Permit Renewal/Minor Amend
Major Amendment
Minor Amendment 13 17
Minor Modification 10
Endorsement 8
Transfer
PIU Registration New/Renewal
A table depicts Class 1 applications by type as compared to the Class 1 permits issued for that type, for 2017.

6. Class I Highlights
TCEQ is processing new Class I permit applications for two facilities: New industrial facility in Calhoun Co. (two additional, deeper hazardous waste disposal wells); Commercial non-hazardous waste disposal well in Jack Co. currently permitted as a Class II commercial oil & gas disposal well.
Several Class I renewal, amendment, & minor modification applications were completed in 2017 or are in process (in final notice period).
UIC Permits Staff worked with permittees on reservoir pressure & operating pressure monitoring for atypical situations in east Texas & the Texas Panhandle, including downhole injection pressure monitoring

7. Class I Wells Installed Since 2010
Class I Well Permit No.
Facility Location
Construction Approval Date
WDW398
Houston
8/13/2010
WDW419
Duval County
12/8/2010
WDW408
Freeport
12/22/2010
WDW332
Sunray
10/25/2011
WDW299
Texas City
11/18/2011
WDW317
Dayton
12/20/2012
WDW432
Amarillo
3/14/2014
WDW351
Borger
2/23/2016
WDWG010001
San Antonio
3/9/2016
WDWG010002
WDW435
Report under review
WDW436
WDW450
Marshall
3/8/2017
WDW391
Beaumont
Report not submitted
WDW335
Cactus
4/21/2017
WDW279
Robstown
2/5/2018
Image Group is Diagram of Class I Injection Wells

8. Class I Wells Closed Since 2010
Class I Well Permit No.
Facility Location
Closure Approval Date
WDW151
Duval County
1/15/2010
WDW299
Texas City
11/18/2011
WDW111
Houston
5/24/2013
WDW016
Odessa
7/11/2013
WDW401
Cleburne
11/5/2015
WDW125
Beaumont
12/22/2015
WDW036
Channelview
2/4/2016
WDW180
Marshall
3/18/2016
WDW243
WDW091
2/2/2017
WDW196
WDW314
WDW395
Winnie
6/6/2017
Image Group is Diagram of Class I Injection Wells

9. UIC Class III Applications & Permits Issued in 2017
Class III Applications Received
Class III Permits Issued
New Area Permit
Area Permit Renewal 1
Permit Renewal/Major Amend
Major Amendment
Permit or PAA Minor Amend 3
Permit or PAA Minor Mod
Endorsement
Transfer
A table lists Class three applications by type compared to class three permits by each respective type, for calendar year 2017.

10. Class III Highlights
The low pricing of uranium yellow cake continues to affect the uranium industry. TCEQ’s permitting workload for in-situ uranium mines mirrors the industry slowdown.
Texas Mining & Reclamation Association submitted a rule petition to TCEQ in October UIC-related revisions requested include changes to rules for in-situ uranium mining
The Commission will consider publishing proposed new rules June 27, 2018
The Commission will consider adopting proposed new rules November 14, 2018
Image Group is uranium yellowcake

11. UIC Class V Authorizations 2017
Class V Well Type
Number of Authorizations or Amendments Issued
Number of Associated Wells
Aquifer Recharge Wells 5R21 (includes ASR Wells) 2 1
WWTP Disposal 5W12
Septic System/Drain Field Disposal Method 5W32
Experimental Wells 5X25 3
Aquifer Remediation 5X26 75
1,907 (includes temporary injection points)
Other Wells 5X27
Total 83
1,914
A table lists the number of Authorizations and Amendments along with the number of associated wells for each type of class five well in 2017.

12. Class V: Aquifer Storage & Recovery (ASR) Wells
TCEQ adopted revised rules in response to HB655 on Aquifer Storage & Recovery (ASR) Wells May 2016.
During 2017, TCEQ issued two authorizations for ASR-related experimental wells:
City of Victoria - large scale cycle testing
Ruby Ranch Water Company - small scale cycle testing
In 2017, TCEQ issued an authorization for a recharge well to inject stormwater captured from a residential rooftop in NW Austin. Because the site is not in a groundwater conservation district & there are no expectations of recovering the injected water, it was considered to be a recharge well.
TCEQ is developing guidance documents for ASR project applications, focusing on methods to determine recoverability of injected water.

13. Class V: Experimental Wells
Experimental wells include a broad range of wells used for testing, such as: aquifer dye tracing, CO2 sequestration, ASR recoverability & formation properties testing.
In 2011, TCEQ issued an authorization for a deep experimental well to obtain reservoir properties data evaluate the viability of disposing water treatment residuals from a proposed clean power plant.
Well was installed to ~7,350 feet below ground surface & tested in 2012.
In 2017, the operator filed for Ch. 7 Bankruptcy before the well was plugged.
TCEQ is working with AG’s Office with the goal of plugging the well.

14. Dilbert comic strip

15. Questions? Lorrie Council, P.G., Manager, UIC Permits Section
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
(512)
Main RMD/UIC Phone: