The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is approaching the deadline for public comment on proposed regulations that would allow companies to apply treated oilfield wastewater onto land surfaces.
Under Rule Project Number 2026-006-309-OW, the draft framework permits the application of this wastewater as close as 100 feet from surface waters and 150 feet from private drinking water wells.
The state regulatory agency has not established pollution standards written specifically for this type of industrial byproduct. Instead, TCEQ proposes to integrate the byproduct into an existing wastewater management program historically utilized for standard domestic and industrial discharges.
The public comment period for the rule proposal is scheduled to close at 11:59 p.m. on June 16, 2026, following a formal public hearing scheduled for June 15 at the TCEQ central office in Austin.
The ongoing rulemaking is the result of Senate Bill 1145, a law authored by State Senator Brian Birdwell that became effective on Sept. 1, 2025. The legislation transferred the permitting authority for the land application of treated “produced water” — the fluid byproduct generated during oil and gas extraction — from the Railroad Commission of Texas to the TCEQ.
The text of Senate Bill 1145 directs the environmental agency to adopt specific standards for land application to prevent the pollution of both surface water and subsurface groundwater. How the final rules are coded will dictate whether billions of gallons of oilfield waste can be utilized for irrigating crops, restoring soil, or augmenting regional waterways.
According to data from the Sierra Club, the water generated during drilling and hydraulic fracturing operations can carry high concentrations of salts, hydrocarbons, heavy metals, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), chemical additives, and naturally occurring radioactive material. Production records indicate that the Permian Basin alone generates between 20 million and 25 million barrels — amounting to 1 billion gallons — of this wastewater every day.
The regulatory approach has drawn scrutiny from environmental advocacy groups. Representatives from the Sierra Club’s Lone Star Chapter, who maintain a seat on the state’s specialized produced water research consortium, stated that the draft rules rely primarily on generic, pre-existing monitoring and permitting requirements rather than establishing tailored discharge boundaries for oilfield contaminants.
Representatives also said that the TCEQ proposal provides no clear scientific explanation for why 100-foot and 150-foot boundary setbacks are sufficient to protect public health and nearby water sources from complex industrial fluids.
During the interim period before final adoption, TCEQ administrators noted that companies may continue to submit permit applications as the agency reviews existing pilot files transferred from the Railroad Commission, which had previously authorized a limited number of localized land-application projects.
The state’s administrative push follows years of policy debates regarding how to manage the oil sector’s largest waste stream as Texas addresses long-term water scarcity. However, state research entities have cautioned against immediate, widespread reuse.
The Texas Produced Water Consortium — established by the Texas Legislature in 2021 to analyze treatment technologies — published a water quality report concluding that there is not yet sufficient scientific evidence to determine that treated produced water can be safely utilized outside active oil and gas fields. The consortium’s findings emphasize that more data is required to fully understand the long-term impacts of the fluid on agricultural soil, groundwater systems, surface water networks, and public health.
Academic researchers also note that the exact chemical composition of the fluid is frequently difficult to quantify. Certain drilling and fracturing chemicals remain legally protected under trade secret exemptions, meaning scientists must evaluate environmental and public health risks without a complete, transparent disclosure of the substances contained in the source water.
TCEQ will host its public evidentiary hearing on the proposed guidelines at 10 a.m. on June 15, followed by the closure of the online public comment portal the next evening. Participating environmental organizations have requested a minimum 30-day extension of the comment window, arguing that the public requires additional time to evaluate the technical components of the industrial wastewater program.