By Hannah Grover
The New Mexico Oil Conservation Commission adopted a rule Thursday on a 3-0 vote prohibiting the use of PFAS in completions and recompletions of oil and gas wells, including in fracking operations.
WildEarth Guardians petitioned the OCC for the rulemaking in 2023.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances have been linked to a variety of health conditions, including some types of cancer. They are sometimes referred to as forever chemicals because they do not break down in the natural environment.
Prior to voting on the rule itself, the commission discussed a request by WildEarth Guardians and New Energy Economy for clarification in the rule. The two advocacy groups asked the commission to continue its deliberations and to consider including all downhole operations in the PFAS ban, however that effort failed on a 2-1 vote with Commissioner Greg Bloom casting the dissenting vote.
“If the PFAS ban only extends to completions and recompletions, an operator can use as much PFAs as they want during, for instance, the drilling operation, and that would defeat the purposes of this rule, which is to protect the environment, the public health and freshwater resources,” Tim Davis, a staff attorney with WildEarth Guardians, said.
The New Mexico Oil and Gas Association opposed including all downhole operations in the prohibition and argued that the evidence presented during a lengthy hearing only examined completions, recompletions, hydraulic fracturing operations, shooting — a method to remove obstructions — and chemical treatment of wells. NMOGA’s attorney Adam Rankin said none of the experts discussed other downhole operations that WildEarth Guardians and New Energy Economy sought to include in the ban.
Rankin said WildEarth Guardians and New Energy Economy’s motion for clarification that sought to include all downhole operations in the ban is “the equivalent of a last ditch effort here to sway the commission … during its deliberations, by interjecting additional arguments after the record has been closed.”
WildEarth Guardians’ petition comes following reports by the advocacy group Physicians for Social Responsibility documenting the use of PFAS in oil and gas operations.
While the industry has stated PFAS chemicals are not currently used in operations in New Mexico, WildEarth Guardians sought to ensure these substances are not used in the future.
The move comes as New Mexico cracks down on PFAS use. This year, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed two bills focused on addressing past PFAS contamination near military bases and preventing future contamination from manufactured goods.WildEarth Guardians has also asked Lujan Grisham to issue an executive order banning PFAS in oil and gas operations.