Checklist for the Evolution of a Water Monitoring Program

Checklist for the Evolution of a Water Monitoring Program Fran Teresi, Garrettsville Board of Public Affairs, 4/2014 Garrettsville, OH (330)527-2630 [email protected]

Local Water Officials

CountyHD State EPA Water Monitoring Program Team

Monitoring Sites Environmental Consultant

WHAT IS YOUR MUNICIPALITY’S DRINKING WATER SOURCE?

_____ Identify the source(s) of your municipality’s drinking water (river, water wells, reservoir, lake, etc.)

_____ Determine whether your municipality has a Drinking Water Source Protection Area, developed w/EPA, that helps define your 1-, 5- and 10-year time of travel (TOT) zones.

WHAT FED/STATE/LOCAL LAWS PROTECT DRINKING WATER SOURCES?

_____ Research whether or not there are federal or state laws that protect a municipality’s drinking water source area or watershed.

1 _____ Look into the federal Energy Policy of 2005 which contains provisions (commonly known as the “Halliburton Loophole”), which exempts the oil/gas industry from parts of the Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, Clean Air Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, and National Environmental Policy Act, among others.

_____ Check if local zoning laws have ordinances that refer to: a) protection of a local drinking water source/watershed, and b) regulate the oil/gas drilling industry and its related activities.

_____ Learn from problems other states are having with the oil/gas industry. Be proactive in updating and using local zoning ordinances as much as possible.

ARE THERE LEGACY AND/OR NEW OIL/GAS DRILLING NEARBY?

_____ Research “legacy” (old) oil/gas leases in or near your drinking water source. Old leases can be sold to new drilling companies.

_____ Keep track of new drilling applications and permits in or near your drinking water source.

DOES YOUR MUNICIPALITY OWN PROPERTY AND MINERAL RIGHTS?

_____ Check whether your municipality has the deed(s) to property(ies) in your watershed/drinking water source area.

_____ Determine whether the municipality owns the mineral rights in those deeds. (Mineral rights = power to control.)

_____ If your municipality is offered a drilling or pipeline lease, contact lawyers familiar with the oil/gas industry to read over contracts and offer specific advice.

_____Concentrate on protecting your community and on maintaining the integrity of your drinking water source, especially if contracts/leases are for property in your watershed, near your drinking water sources, in residential areas, or near schools, hospitals, and areas where large groups of residents congregate.

2 DO LOCAL PUBLIC OFFICIALS HAVE THE WILL & MEANS TO MONITOR?

_____ Research oil/gas industry-related problems in other states (PA, WY, OK, TX, OH, etc.) Include cradle-to-grave activities of shale drilling (injection wells, earthquakes, compressor stations, open pit flowback storage, chemicals used, truck/train transport, water usage, radioactive drill cutting disposal, cracked or aging well casings, willful negligence, pipelines, poor cement jobs, accidents, leaks)

_____ Keep local officials updated on latest news in oil/gas industry, both pros and cons.

_____ Are local officials signing leases (private, public) with oil/gas companies?

_____ Do local officials/water department have money to pursue developing a Water Monitoring Program?

_____ Determine your watershed through a geologist/hydrologist professional familiar with the oil/gas industry and related environmental risks.

_____ Hire professional environmental consultants (geologist/hydrologist) to map the waterflow (surface and/or underground) that feeds your drinking water source.

_____ Determine (with geologist/hydrologist) location and number of water monitoring sites; most cost-effective plan.

_____ Contact land owners in watershed areas for permission to proceed with water monitoring program.

_____ Solicitor draws up any necessary legal documents between land owners and municipality to proceed.

HOW TO COLLECT LEGALLY DEFENSIBLE BASELINE WATER DATA?

_____ Research chemicals and/or parameters for water testing. Get advice from state and county officials, web sites, EPA groundwater/drinking water departments, drillers.

3 _____ Arrange for collection and analysis of water samples by an EPA-certified lab according to EPA protocols at each monitoring site and at intake to local water facility.

_____ Collect a minimum of 2 years of baseline water quality data (twice a year in different seasons, such as spring/fall).

_____ Ideally, baseline water quality testing will be completed before shale gas drilling begins in your area.

_____ If this is not possible, continue testing to observe water quality changes as drilling operates in your watershed.

_____ Hire geologist/hydrologist (environmental consultants) to analyze the water quality data and issue reports annually.

WHAT WILL WATER MONITORING DO FOR YOUR MUNICIPALITY?

_____ Your municipality now has an “early warning system” to detect a water contamination event before it reaches the intake to your water facility.

_____ Your municipality now has a “window of opportunity” to plan, respond and remediate the contamination before it reaches your water facility.

_____ Your municipality has time to put its Water Contingency Plan into operation.

_____ Your municipality has time to apply for federal emergency funds, if needed, and to plan for another water source, if necessary (piping from another municipality, digging a new water well, etc.)

_____ Contact local drillers (oil/gas well and injection well) informing them of the on-going Water Monitoring Program your municipality has in place.

_____ Share underground water migration and watershed maps, monitoring site locations, and water quality data, if Public Records Requests are received. Oil/gas companies in your area may be motivated to operate more carefully.

4 _____ Ask each driller for an Emergency Response Plan in case of an accident or intentional spill.

_____ Keep your municipality and surrounding communities informed and updated on the progress of your Water Monitoring Program via local newspapers.

_____ Contact federal and state legislators, county officials, and water organizations such as AWWA, regarding your concerns about protecting the integrity of your drinking water source and inform them of the Water Monitoring Program you have in place.