For large volumes of wastewater and/or longer distances, piping to injection wells is usually preferred to trucking for both economic and environmental reasons (i.e., less trucking CO2, traffic). However, pipelines still carry significant environmental risks, including leaks and aquifer contamination with toxic fracking chemicals. These accidents, which include over 1,000 spills/leaks and several million gallons per year in New Mexico alone, led to the state’s Produced Water Act in 2019. (full story)