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TCEQ details new oil-and-gas surface-water permits after statutory transfer of authority
Summary
TCEQ staff described new state general permits for oil and gas surface-water discharges following authority transferred by House Bill 2771 and summarized current authorizations and pending applications.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality(TCEQ) described the agency's new permitting framework for oil-and-gas discharges to surface waters after the Legislature transferred state responsibility under House Bill 2771.
TCEQ permit writer Nikkita (Nikki) said the agency obtained authorization from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in January 2021 via a revised memorandum of agreement and has developed state general permits to replace several prior NPDES and Railroad Commission authorizations. "TXG-310000 replaces EPA's general permits TXG-260000 and TXG-330000," Nikki said, and TCEQ issued the permit on Jan. 10, 2024.
Why it matters: The transfer centralizes state permitting of discharges to surface waters from many oil-and-gas extraction facilities and gas plants at TCEQ. Staff emphasized limits on TCEQ authority: land application and reuse remain under the Railroad Commission of Texas.
TCEQ described two new general permits and related implementation steps. TXG-310000 covers onshore stripper well facilities, coastal facilities and territorial seas facilities within three miles of the Texas coast; WQG-280000 is a state-only permit for outer continental shelf facilities between three and 10.2 miles offshore. The agency also amended the hydrostatic test general permit (TXG-670000) to include crude oil and natural-gas hydrostatic test discharges.
Nikki summarized the outreach and adoption timeline: draft TXG-310000 went to EPA Region 6 for a 90-day review on Aug. 2, 2022; EPA completed review Nov. 14, 2022, and raised no objections. Statewide public notice ran in the Texas Register and newspapers beginning May 12, 2023 with a 30-day comment period. The commission adopted TXG-310000 on Jan. 10, 2024. WQG-280000 was developed with EPA Region 6 as a state-only counterpart and was adopted the same day.
Current authorizations and applications: staff listed specific counts of existing and pending authorizations: 70 general permits for hydrostatic tests under TXG-670000; 201 general permits under TXG-310000 (Nikki later confirmed 21 authorizations in response to a meeting question); six general permits under WQG-280000; nine individual oil-and-gas TPDES permits; and eight pending individual TPDES applications.
Discussion vs. decision: staff presented implementation details and counts and answered clarifying questions; no board votes or new rule adoptions were taken during the meeting.
Ending: TCEQ staff said forms (NOI/NOC/NOT) for the new permits were developed and reminded permittees and stakeholders to consult TCEQmaterials for application steps and transition timing.
