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INJECTION WELL TECHNOLOGY
What wastes are disposed in class I
injection wells? A wide variety of liquid wastes can be
managed using deep injection well technology. Typically, these
wastes are large water volume, low concentration waste streams that
are aqueous and comprised of more than 95% water. Often these
liquids have already been recycled or pre-treated and are not usable
as a resource since they have little economic or energy value. Some
common dilute wastes now managed via deep well disposal
include:
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Salt Water
Brines
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Dilute
Hydrocarbons and Solvents
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Heavy
Metal Solutions
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Agricultural
Waste Waters
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Storm
Water and Municipal Waste
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Meat &
Crop Processing Liquids
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Inorganic
Solutions from Manufacturing
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Industrial
Cleaning Solutions
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Groundwater
Clean-ups
For comparison, the
concentrations of disposed materials in many of these injected wastes are
similar to mixing a two-gallon can of a product like salt into a large tank
truck of fresh water (2 gallons / 4000 gallons ~ 500 parts per million).
What industries use deep well
disposal? A wide variety of facilities throughout the United States
now depend on deep injection wells for the safe disposal of liquid wastes.
Worldwide, the oil and gas and mining industries use well technology to both
produce product and safely manage waste by-products. Some of the industries in
the United States that use industrial deep injection well technology include:
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