WSPA President Catherine Reheis-Boyd issued the following statement regarding
Sierra Club/Center for Biological Diversity Lawsuit on UIC Injection Wells 
  

 
  
“The State of California and U.S Environmental Protection Agency have collaborated on
a comprehensive work plan for underground injection that includes an aggressive
schedule for review of injection wells and corrective action where warranted. The experts
at those agencies, with the cooperation of oil producers, have made a careful evaluation
of the situation and developed the action plan to address it. The State incorporated the
aggressive schedule from the action plan into emergency regulations that went into effect
immediately. This lawsuit is an attempt to thwart that regulatory process.” 
  
 
  
Background
The Underground Injection Control (UIC) program is overseen by the United States
Environmental Protection Agency and is designed to protect underground sources of
drinking water and ensure compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. There are six
types of injection wells under the program – Class II injection wells are used to increase
oil recovery and to safely manage the water produced along with oil and natural gas.
Underground injection is an integral and necessary part of oil production in
California. In California, these Class II injection wells are regulated by the Department
of Conservation, Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR). 
  
A robust work plan has been established by DOGGR, and approved by the US EPA, to
carefully review all well records and identify corrective action where warranted.
California’s oil producers support this review and have been working collaboratively
with the regulators to provide all the necessary data. 
  
More information on DOGGR’s work plan and oversight of injection wells can be found
here. 
  
 
  
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