Drinking water: Underground injection control program— Aquaculture injection wells, etc.; peer reviewers and study,

[Federal Register: January 7, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 4)]

[Notices]

[Page 1008-1009]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr07ja99-19]

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-6215-9]

Call for Peer Reviewers and Data on Aquaculture Injection Wells, Mining Wells, Sewage Treatment Effluent Wells, and Other Class V Injection Wells Including Certain Industrial Wells; Underground Injection Control (UIC) Class V Study

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Call for peer review nominations; request for scientific information.

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is inviting nominations of qualified candidates for peer review committees addressing reports on Class V Underground Injection Control (UIC) Wells. We are also seeking supplementary information, studies, and research pertaining to Class V UIC Wells.

DATES: Please submit information and nominations in response to this notice by February 1, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Submit to: Ms. Amber Moreen; USEPA; 401 M St., SW (4606); Washington, DC 20460; telephone: (202) 260-4891; e-mail: moreen.amber@epamail.epa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Anhar Karimjee; Class V Study Manager; USEPA; 401 M St., SW (4606); Washington, DC 20460; telephone: (202) 260-3862; e-mail: karimjee.anhar@epamail.epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A study of Underground Injection Control Class V wells is being conducted to satisfy a consent decree with the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund. The decree requires that a study of all Class V wells not currently slated for regulation be completed by September 1999. The results of the study will be used to help the Agency determine whether to regulate each subclass of Class V well and propose any necessary regulations by April 2001. Wells for which we are seeking experts and information include:

(1) Aquaculture Injection Wells dispose of water used for cultivation of marine and freshwater animals and plants.

(2) Mining Wells:

1. In-Situ Fossil Fuel Recovery Wells are used for in-situ recovery of lignite, coal, tar sands, and oil shale. The wells inject water, air, oxygen, solvents, combustibles, or explosives into underground coal or oil shale beds to liberate fossil fuels. Underground coal

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   gasification (UCG) and in-situ oil shale retorting are two processes which use in-situ fossil fuel recovery injection wells.

2. Solution Mining Wells inject leaching solutions (lixiviants) in order to remove an ore mineral from its original geological setting. The saturated solution is then extracted by a production well, and the target mineral is harvested for processing. Copper, gold, salt, silver, and uranium may all be mined by solution mining processes.

3. Spent Brine Return Flow Wells are used to dispose of the spent brine which result from the extraction of minerals, halogens and other compounds from fluids. These wells are commonly associated with manufacturing facilities that produce specialty chemicals such as boron, bromine, magnesia, or their derivatives.

4. Mine Backfill Wells are wells which inject water, sand, mill tailings, or other mining byproducts in order to control subsidence caused by mining, to dispose of mining byproducts, or to fill sections of a mine.

   (3) Sewage Treatment Effluent Wells, which are used by privately or publicly owned treatment works (POTW) to inject treated or untreated domestic sewage through a vertical well or a leachfield. Aquifer Recharge wells, Aquifer Storage and Recovery Wells, Subsidence Control wells, and Saline Intrusion Barrier wells injecting treated or untreated wastewater are considered Sewage Treatment Effluent wells for the purposes of this study.

   (4) Other Class V Injection Wells:

1. Industrial Wells not addressed in the proposed rule (July 29, 1998) (63 FR 40586). These include non-contact cooling water return flow wells, laundromats without dry cleaning facilities, carwashes without undercarriage washing or engine cleaning, and food processing disposal wells.

2. Special Drainage Wells include a variety of wells such as potable water tank overflow, construction dewatering, swimming pool drainage, and mine dewatering wells. These drainage wells receive fluids that cannot be classified as agricultural, industrial, or storm water.

3. Experimental Wells are used to test new technologies. Wells will not be classified as experimental if the technology can be considered under an established well subclass. For example, a well used for bioremediation will be classified as an aquifer remediation well.

   Nomination of Peer Reviewers

   EPA is drafting reports which summarize the available information on these wells. We anticipate that these reports will be from 15 to 40 pages long. We would like peer reviewers to comment on the technical accuracy and completeness of the draft documents addressing these subclasses of wells. Selection for peer reviewers will be based on demonstrated capability and professional accomplishment in the indicated area of specialization, in the conduct or management of scientific or engineering research and in applying research to ground water issues. Nominations must include a resume describing the educational and professional qualifications of the nominee and the nominee's current address and daytime telephone number. To avoid conflicts of interest, candidates should provide their previous employment and any financial or other interests that could possibly be relevant to the study.

   Submission of Information

   The UIC program is providing an opportunity for public involvement. While the Agency conducts a thorough literature search, there may be other articles or unpublished studies of which we are not aware. The Agency would greatly appreciate receiving scientific information from the public. The most useful documents for EPA are unpublished studies or other primary technical sources that we may not otherwise obtain through open literature searches. For a list of articles and studies included in the current report, please consult http://www.epa.gov/ ogwdw/uic/cl5study.html. Also note, if you have submitted information previously there is no need to resubmit that information.

   Interested persons should provide a list briefly describing scientific comments, analyses, studies, and other pertinent scientific information they wish to submit. Where possible, documents should be listed in scientific citation format, that is, author(s), title, journal, and date. Please note that the correspondence is a Class V Study Submission, the well subclass it pertains to, and include names, addresses, and telephone numbers of persons to contact for additional information on the submission. The submission should be mailed to the aforementioned address or submitted electronically to moreen.amber@epamail.epa.gov. Information will also be accepted on 3.5'' floppy disks.

   Dated: December 28, 1998. Elizabeth Fellows, Acting Director, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

   [FR Doc. 99-235Filed1-6-99; 8:45 am]

   BILLING CODE 6560-50-P