In the state’s latest Joint Groundwater Monitoring and Contamination Report, the Railroad Commission had included 557 groundwater contamination cases caused by oil and gas operations.
The spokesperson said cases where chloride contaminated the groundwater—of which there are 238 cases reported—were “most likely sourced from produced water.” This indicates that produced water entering the environment, whether from spills or other incidents, is a significant contributor to groundwater contamination in Texas.
Read more from Martha Pskowski with Inside Climate News here.