DSHW-2025-000847

Brian Speer <[e-mail]>
FW: DWMRC's Intent to Enforce?
Marty Banks <[e-mail]>Fri, Jan 3, 2025 at 1:03 PM
To: "Brian Speer ([e-mail])" <[e-mail]>, "[e-mail]" <[e-mail]>
Dear Director and Mr. Speer: Please see the attached letter and video clip regarding
DWMRC’s intention to enforce its new E&P waste landfill rule.

Best,

Marty Banks | Attorney | Parr Brown Gee & Loveless
101 South 200 East, Suite 700 | Salt Lake City, Utah 84111
D: 801.257.7936 | F: 801.532.7750 | [e-mail] | www.parrbrown.com

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2 attachments
20241220_142923.mp4
10174K
IWM Letter to DWMRC re Enforcement of EP Waste Landfill Rule, 1.3.25 - 1.docx
68K

MARTIN K. BANKS ATTORNEY AT LAW 101 SOUTH 200 EAST, SUITE 700 SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 84111 [e-mail] [phone]

Via Email & Regular Mail February 11, 2025
Utah Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control Attn: Douglas J. Hansen, Director Brian Speer, Solid Waste Manager
PO Box 144880
Salt Lake City, UT 84114-4880 [e-mail] [e-mail]
Re: Enforcement of New E&P Waste Landfill Rule
Dear Director & Solid Waste Manager: This letter is regarding the Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control’s (“DWMRC”) recently proposed rules relating to the
solid waste generated from exploration, development, or production of oil, gas, or geothermal energy (“E&P Waste”). The Board of Waste Management and Radiation Control approved DWMRC’s proposed rules, which became effective on October 15, 2024 (“New E&P Rules”). Those New E&P Rules include a new section 321 which contains provisions for the management of E&P Waste that is to be disposed of in landfills (“Landfills” or “321 Landfills”), and a new
section 322 which contains provisions for the management of E&P Waste containing free liquid that is to be disposed of in surface impoundments/evaporation ponds (“Impoundments” or “322 Impoundments”). Industry Urged a Liner Requirement for Landfills - As you know, numerous members of
the Utah solid waste management industry, both producers of E&P Waste and managers of Landfills and Impoundments (including my client Integrated Water Management, LLC (“IWM”)), as well as the Utah Petroleum Association, had vigorously urged DWMRC, both in written comments and in DWMRC and Board meetings, to include a liner requirement for
Landfills for the protection of the environment and human health. DWMRC declined to heed the
industry’s urging, and the New E&P Rules were approved without a liner requirement for 321 Landfills. As you will recall, one of the main bases for the industry’s urging was that the industry standard for such solid waste Landfills was to include a liner, as confirmed by the
EPA’s “Best Practices” letter instructing that such landfills should have liners. See previously
submitted Comments at pp. 5-6 and EPA’s Instructional Best Practices Letter (“Landfills should be designed and constructed per industry standard, to include appropriate composite liner systems . . . .”), attached hereto.
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Industry Warned of Irresponsible Landfill Operators - Consistent with that industry
practice and EPA’s instruction, for the last ten years (prior to New E&P Rules), DWMRC had
required that such landfills include a liner. See previously submitted Comments at pp. 7-8. Indeed, while DWMRC’s proposed E&P rules were still being considered, the industry warned DWRMC and the Board that a liner requirement was needed because some unscrupulous or at least unsophisticated landfill operators would ignore the detailed requirements of the proposed
E&P rules. More specifically, the industry warned that if the proposed E&P rules were approved
and implemented without a liner requirement for 321 Landfills, certain landfill operators would indeed operate their Landfills without liners (to avoid the cost), but nevertheless accept and dispose of E&P Waste containing free liquid at their unlined 321 Landfills. The industry warned that such irresponsible Landfill operators would ignore that part of the New E&P Rules that
distinguishes between regular E&P Waste that could be accepted and disposed of at an unlined
321 Landfill and E&P Waste containing free liquid that could only be accepted and disposed of at a lined 322 Impoundment. E&P Waste Containing Free Liquid Prohibited at Landfills - Utah Admin. Code R315-
303-3(1)(b) provides that “An owner or operator of a landfill shall minimize liquids admitted to
active areas by: … (b) prohibiting the disposal of containerized liquids larger than household size, noncontainerized liquids, sludge containing free liquid, or any waste containing free liquids in containers larger than household size.”1 R315-301-2(28) defines “free liquid” to mean “liquids that readily separate from the solid portion of a waste under ambient temperature and
pressure or as determined by Test Method 9095B, Paint Filter Liquids Test, as provided in EPA
Publication SW-846, "Test Methods for Evaluating Solid Waste, Physical/Chemical Methods" available at the US EPA Hazardous Waste Test Methods/SW-846 website.” In short, a batch of E&P Waste that contains liquids that readily separate from the solid portion of the waste, or as determined by EPA’s Paint Filter Liquids Test, is strictly prohibited from being disposed of at a 321 Landfill, and can only be disposed at a lined 322 Impoundment.
Certain Operators Are Disposing of E&P Waste Containing Free Liquid at Landfills - As warned, now that the New E&P Rules are in place (not requiring liners for Landfills), certain landfill operators are in fact now accepting and disposing of E&P Waste containing free liquid at
their unlined Landfills under section 321, which under the New E&P Rule is only allowed to be
disposed at lined Impoundments under section 322. For example, even after the effective date of the New E&P Rules, Environmental Energy Innovations (“EEI”) has continued to dispose of E&P Waste containing free liquid onto the bare ground at its unlined Landfill. See 12/20/24 video of EEI loading E&P Waste containing free liquid into its manure spreader attached to conveying email. We also have, and upon request can provide, video of EEI spreading that E&P
Waste containing free liquid on the bare ground. Even if going forward EEI commits to properly stabilize such E&P Waste containing free liquid, it has not “described in a high liquid waste management plan approved by the director” any such stabilization measures as required, and has not “installed[ed] and maintain[ed] a containment system having a permeability of no more than 1x10-7 cm/sec, that is capable of maintaining integrity under the operation of heavy equipment
for: (A) all high liquid waste unloading areas and structures; (B) staging areas for high liquid

1 Merriam-Webster defines “liquid” as “a fluid (such as water) that has no independent shape but has a definite volume and does not expand indefinitely and that is only slightly compressible."
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wastes before dewatering, stabilization, or other treatment; and (C) areas used for dewatering, stabilization, or other treatment“ as required. In short, EEI and other landfill operators are
brazenly ignoring the New E&P Waste Rules. DWMRC was repeatedly warned that this would
happen, and DWMRC is now on notice that those warnings are playing out exactly as contemplated. Request for DWMRC’s Intentions Regarding Enforcement - Of course, this problem
could have been avoided had DWMRC included a liner requirement for 321 Landfills the same
way it included a liner requirement for 322 Impoundments. Given DWMRC’s vigorous effort in pushing the New E&P Rule and its resistance to the industry’s repeated requests to include a liner requirement for Landfills, we would hope that DWMRC will exert an equally vigorous effort in enforcing the New E&P Rules. Anything less than DWMRC’s rigorous and immediate
enforcement of the New E&P Rules will deprive the compliant operators of E&P Waste
Landfills of a level playing field, and will deprive the environment of needed protections. To that end, we respectfully request that DWMRC confirm, no later than January 26, 2025, that it intends to rigorously inspect and effectively enforce the landfill industry’s compliance with the New E&P Rules (and in particular, compliance with the above-
referenced Rule “prohibiting” a Landfill from disposing of “sludge containing free liquid, or any waste containing free liquids….”). Respectfully,

PARR BROWN GEE & LOVELESS /s/ Martin K. Banks Martin K. Banks

cc: Walter Plumb Nate Robinson Russell Sorensen Rikki Hrenko-Browning Bret Randall
Senator Kevin J. Stratton