Two recent studies by the U.S. Geological Survey, Duke University, and the University of Missouri have demonstrated that fracking wastewater injection disposal sites can lead to contamination of surface waters in nearby streams.  Of particular concern, the studies found endocrine-disrupting activity in the streams at levels high enough to lead to adverse health effects in aquatic life. Where potential or actual public underground drinking water sources are affected, citizens suits under the Safe Drinking Water Act may provide a way for people to defend their environment from contamination by wastewater injection.

In the past decade, a lot of attention has been paid to modern hydraulically-fractured and horizontally drilled oil and gas wells that have increasingly populated Pennsylvania and Ohio. It can be easy to forget that this is not the first (or even second) round of energetic well drilling in the area. Many people deal with old wells on their property, some of which were drilled 50 or 60 years ago. Old wells - and old pipes, fittings, valves, tanks, and other infrastructure pieces - can be unreliable or even outright dangerous. Wells that provide "sour gas" - natural gas which is naturally rich in hydrogen sulfide, a chemical which corrodes metal, causes respiratory problems, blindness and death - can cause serious public health crises if they are not properly maintained. Even properly operating wells can go dry or nearly dry - leaving you with noisy and intrusive oil and gas equipment on your property with little to no royalties for the inconvenience.