The Friends of the Pecos River and Texas Produced Water Consortium will host an educational forum, a “town hall” conversation about the beneficial reuse of treated produced water, on Friday, October 2, from 9:30 a.m. to noon at the Iraan Civic Center.
This event will give landowners and community members the chance to hear directly from researchers studying produced water treatment to learn about the ongoing research and ask questions about potential permit applications to discharge treated produced water in the Pecos River region.
Researchers at the Texas Produced Water Consortium have been exploring the safety and efficacy of produced water treatment. Their research spans across disciplines including engineering, plant and soil science, natural resource management and policy. Their ongoing pilot studies evaluate the safety and feasibility of produced water treatment and beneficial reuse applications.
At the educational forum, attendees will hear from the director of the Texas Produced Water Consortium, Shane Walker, who also serves as director of the Water and the Environment Research Center and is a professor of civil, environmental and construction engineering at Texas Tech University. He will provide an overview of produced water, why researchers are exploring treatment and reuse, and what treatment pilot projects have demonstrated achievable water quality. Walker will also discuss beneficial reuse applications such as Pecos River discharge, agricultural irrigation, industrial reuse and rangeland restoration.
“It is important for landowners and community members to participate in this forum to learn about the exciting advances on clean water production in the Permian, especially for increasing flows in the Pecos and irrigating crops, Walker said. “It is a great opportunity for stakeholders to ask questions and share their perspectives.”
Several permit applications are currently on file at the Texas Commission for Environmental Quality to discharge treated produced water into the river at Red Bluff Reservoir and below the reservoir in the Salt Creek tributary.
Walker will be joined by Scott Collins, professor of natural resource management at Texas Tech University, who studies how produced water could impact the Pecos River region.
Friends of the Pecos River and the Texas Produced Water Consortium invite landowners and community members to come learn more about the current science and bring their practical questions and perspectives to the conversation.
For additional information, please reach out to Friends of the Pecos River (info@friendsofthepecosriver.org). Attendees may also visit the event’s Facebook page to RSVP and learn more.
