New Mexico called on to ban 'forever chemicals' in oil and gas, as feds push restrictions

Environmental groups in New Mexico renewed a call to investigate oil and gas drilling fluids for the presence of substances known as “forever chemicals” that could endanger water supplies and public safety.

This came as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposal earlier this year to designate the chemicals as hazardous materials and increase state oversight of contamination, in response to a petition from the State of New Mexico.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are industrial chemicals known to not break down in the environment, and pose a risk of cancers and other health problems from long-term exposure.

More: Oil driller Apache agrees to $9.5 million air pollution settlement in Permian Basin

In New Mexico, PFAS contamination was found near Holloman and Canon Air Force bases – linked to a fire-fighting foam – as the State brought litigation hoping to force the federal government to clean up the contamination.

The two proposals would first federally clarify “hazardous waste” as contamination from permitted hazardous waste facilities, and then add PFAS to the list of such hazardous compounds.

That means facilities would be evaluated for potential PFAS contamination, requiring further investigations and remediation by state and federal agencies.

More: It could become more expensive to drill for oil on New Mexico state land, should bill pass

But oil and gas critics warned the contamination could also come from liquids used in hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a process that sees a combination of water, sand and chemicals pumped underground to break up shale rock containing crude oil and natural gas.

Expanded use of fracking and horizontal drilling led the Permian Basin in southeast New Mexico to boom in recent years, becoming the nation’s busiest oilfield.

Melissa Troutman, climate and energy advocate at Santa Fe-based WildEarth Guardians said this could put local communities in the region, like Carlsbad or Hobbs, in danger of PFAS contamination.

More: Diamondback Energy buys Endeavor Resources in Permian Basin for $26 billion

“Unfortunately, PFAS pollution from the oil and gas industry in New Mexico remains unchecked, posing continued risk to New Mexicans and our outdoors,” Troutman said. “We call on Gov. (Michelle) Lujan Grisham to protect New Mexico from PFAS in oil and gas.”

And PFAS contamination could be present in drilling fluids, according to an April 2023 study by Physicians for Social Responsibility which was cited by WildEarth Guardians and others.

The group filed a petition for a rulemaking at the New Mexico Oil Conservation Division (OCD) in May 2023, asking New Mexico leaders to begin the process of banning PFAS in oil and gas operations and requiring more disclosure of the chemicals used in fracking.

More: Thousands of acres of Eddy County could be sold to oil industry. Here's how to participate.

Much of the contents of fracking chemicals are proprietary, the study read, making it difficult to determine the true extent of possible contamination.

The groups argued the chemicals should be banned, and New Mexico should expand required disclosure of the fluid’s contents.

The report detailed the use of 9,000 tons of PFAS in the drilling of 261 wells in New Mexico between 2013 and 2022.

More: Lawmakers hope to block oil wells near homes, schools via New Mexico Senate memorial

Another 243 million pounds of “trade secret” chemicals were injected into 8,200 other wells during that time, the study read, contending those could have also been PFAS.

More than 200 oil and gas wells in the Permian and northwest San Juan Basin were found containing a specific PFAS chemical known as PTFE, the report read, which was initially marketed as Teflon.

Between 2013 and 2022, the report showed Eddy County in the Permian region had 113 wells injected with PTFE – the most in New Mexico – followed by 74 in Lea County.

More: Lawmakers look to send more state funds to clean up New Mexico's abandoned oil wells

Eddy County saw 2,028 pounds of Teflon injected in those wells, and Lea County had 557 pounds of the substance injected.

“The staggering number of chemical trade secret claims raises the potential that PFAS use is even more widespread than reported,” said the report’s lead author Dusty Horwitt. “New Mexico officials should act immediately to protect the public by prohibiting the use of PFAS in oil and gas extraction and requiring full disclosure of all chemicals used in oil and gas wells.”

Troutman said state law already provides oil and gas companies several exemptions and subsidies that could lead to contamination from oil and gas wells and called on Lujan Grisham and her administration to expand its approach to mitigating PFAS exposure to the oil and gas industry.

More: Vital Energy's $1 billion plan to gain a foothold in the Permian Basin oilfields

“New Mexicans deserve leaders that hold polluters accountable and make no compromises in protecting our water and communities,” she said.

The idea of forcing oil and gas companies to divulge chemicals used in fracking saw some push back from Republican supporters of the industry.

New Mexico Rep. John Block (R-51) during an interim meeting of the Legislature’s Radioactive and Hazardous Materials Committee said doing so would unduly impede the market via government regulations.

"Those trade secrets are important to not infringe on that level,” he said at the meeting. “If we go to these companies and say 'You have no trade secrets,' then there is no market."

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on the social media platform X.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: EPA proposes PFAS rules. Will New Mexico ban them in oil and gas?