Lawmakers are divided on whether to reinstate the practice of spraying oil and gas wastewater on roads for dust suppression, an issue that was debated at a House Republican Policy Committee hearing following a June debate in the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee.
“It all comes down to risk assessment,” says retired geologist and hydrologist Bert Waite. “Do the environmental impacts outweigh the benefits that could be produced? Most people would agree that some environmental impacts are unavoidable and acceptable in order to have safe roads to drive on.”
The Environmental Protection Agency ended the practice three years ago after it had been allowed for decades. Other states, including Ohio and Michigan, also use saltwater to minimize dust and ice on rural roads.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Greg Vitali, a Havertown Democrat, seeks to make the ban on wastewater use law a law that critics say has seen nearly 4 million gallons of saltwater used on roads since 2018 and that illegal dumping continues as an “open secret.”
Local officials have argued against ending salt spraying, citing the economic benefits and saying it is superior to other dust and ice suppression methods. “The salt is often donated to towns at no cost, so it’s a win-win for both the salt producers and the towns that need to keep their roads well-maintained,” Waite said.
Jim Trussell, chairman of the Hamlin County Board of Supervisors in McKean County, highlighted the challenges since the moratorium: “Dealing with the dust issue has been a challenge since the moratorium on salt application went into effect. We’ve been applying for grants from the (Department of Community and Economic Development) and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation for four years to resurface these roads, but so far we’ve been denied.”
Steve Goodwill, road superintendent for Columbus County in Warren County, emphasized budget constraints: “The government in Harrisburg doesn’t understand how bad the dust is in this part of the state. We live in a clay environment and we have more dirt roads than paved roads. A lot of our residents don’t like the dust. We just don’t have a huge budget to do all this.”
Venango County Commissioner Sam Breen criticized the policy: “Frankly, this is just another example of a policy made by people who don’t have dirt roads and don’t have this problem at all, but the idea of spreading byproducts of the oil and gas industry on the roads sounds unpleasant to them.”
Republican Rep. Martin Causer of Bradford questioned the environmental issues raised by the study, saying, “There are a lot of secrets about this (Penn State) study, a lot of questions… My point is, they got what they paid for.”
Former Environmental Protection Agency Administrator David Hess has argued for a ban on salt spraying to prevent environmental pollution, but Republican Senator Scott Hutchinson of Oil City counters, “We’ve been salting our roads for years, and this is the cleanest area in the state environmentally. We have rivers with good trout stocks, and you can drink the creek water if you want. People come here because we have a beautiful environment.”
Republican Rep. Mike Armanini of DuBois saw the brine ban as part of a broader strategy against the natural gas and oil industries: “There’s a group in Pennsylvania that basically wants to get rid of natural gas, oil and coal. This is another ploy in their plan to attack the natural gas and oil industries. If we left those three industries alone, we’d be one of the most prosperous states in the country. But we’re at the bottom because we’re not getting the benefits.”
