Frio County Commissioners Court Educating Locals On Disposal Wells In Dilley

There has been growing concern in Frio County related to the number of Eagle Ford disposal wells located nearby. The county has the most disposal wells and the fewest number of oil wells of any major Eagle Ford county. In 2012, over 10 million barrels of waste were disposed of in the county. The number of trucks coming through the area and a growing number of disposal wells has locals a little timid when it comes to their groundwater. The Frio County Commissioners Court held a meeting in Dilley to educate locals about waste water injection.

Note: It is estimated that 20+ gallons of waste water are created for every foot of rock that is drilled. Based on that metric, Eagle Ford wells have between 5,000 and 10,000 barrels of waste each.

“Up to now, I have not been told of a single water source that has ever been contaminated.”

— Noel Perez, Dilley City Administrator.

Groundwater is seldom to almost never contaminated by disposal wells, so the worry isn't warranted. With that, it's still important to monitor local changes to make sure the sudden increase is disposal volumes over the past few years hasn't caused any unintended changes.

Waste Connections Acquires R360 Environmental for $1.3 Billion

R360 Environmental Locations

Waste Connections is acquiring R360 Environmental Solutions for $1.3 billion. The deal gives Woodlands based Waste Connections operations in several key oil & gas basins across the country. R360 provides non-hazardous oilfield waste treatment, recovery and disposal services in the oil-rich Permian, Bakken and Eagle Ford Basins. Operations include 26 facilities across Louisiana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming.

"Through acquisitions and new facility development, R360 has created leading positions in key basins, providing closed loop oilfield waste services within an increasingly stringent regulatory environment. This acquisition represents a natural extension of our existing E&P disposal activities," said Ronald J. Mittelstaedt, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "While a tepid economy has impacted MSW volumes, increased drilling activity in unconventional areas is fueling impressive organic growth within the E&P waste sector. R360 is actively permitting several new sites to further expand its operations in this growing industry."

"For R360, this is a terrific opportunity that should enable us to grow more rapidly," said Troy W. Thacker, Chief Executive Officer of R360 Environmental Solutions. "By combining our business and expertise with the scale, breadth and financial resources of Waste Connections, we will be able to enhance the environmental solutions we bring to our customers. Both companies value safety and protecting the environment as well as excellence and integrity in business practices. We believe that Waste Connections will be a great home for R360 and our team."

Read the full press release at wasteconnections.com