Vulnerability of Groundwater Resources Underlying Unlined Produced Water Ponds in the Tulare Basin of the San Joaquin Valley, California

The San Joaquin Valley (SJV) in California is one of the most agriculturally productive regions in the world relying in part on groundwater for irrigation and for domestic or municipal water supply for nearly 4 million residents. One area of growing concern in the SJV is potential impact to groundwater resources from ongoing and historical disposal of oilfield-produced water into unlined produced water ponds (PWPs). In this investigation, we utilized available information on composition of produced water disposed into unlined PWPs and levels of total dissolved solids in underlying groundwater to demonstrate that this disposal practice, both past and present, poses risks to groundwater resources, especially in the Tulare Basin in the southern SJV. Groundwater monitoring at unlined PWP facilities is relatively sparse, but where monitoring has occurred, impact to aquifers used for public and agricultural water supply has been observed and has proven to be too expensive to actively remediate. Results of this investigation should inform policy discussions in California and other locations where disposal of produced water into unlined impoundments occurs, especially at locations that overlie groundwater resources.

Automated summary

The investigation highlights the risks posed by the historical and ongoing disposal of oilfield-produced water into unlined produced water ponds (PWPs) on groundwater resources in the San Joaquin Valley, especially in the Tulare Basin. Sparse groundwater monitoring at unlined PWP facilities has shown impacts on aquifers used for public and agricultural water supply, which have proven to be too costly to remediate.