Climate Change
New Mexico Lawmakers to Decide Whether Oil and Gas Wastewater Could Be Reused on Wide Scale
If new rules are approved, treated “produced water” could be used for agriculture, growing trees and manufacturing.
In New Mexico—one of the largest producers of oil and gas in the country—researchers are trying to grow hemp, sunflowers and trees with purified fracking wastewater. For now, using such “produced water” for anything in the open environment is prohibited in the state.
New Mexico Lawmakers to Decide Whether Oil and Gas Wastewater Could Be Reused on Wide Scale