The Permian Is Drowning in Its Own Wastewater, Trade Paper Claims

The Permian Basin is the largest contributor to US oil production, accounting for nearly half of total output in both 2024 and 2025.

Fracking involves injecting water, chemicals, and sand into horizontal wells to fracture oil-bearing rock and keep it open. (Photo: ExxonMobil) 

But that success comes at a cost: massive volumes of wastewater—and the industry is running out of places to store it, Irina Slav reported for Oilprice.com.

Hydraulic fracturing, the dominant method of oil extraction in the Permian, is a highly water-intensive process. Fracking involves injecting water, chemicals, and sand into horizontal wells to fracture oil-bearing rock and keep it open.

As lateral well lengths have increased, so too has the amount of water required.

That water, mixed with chemicals, is then disposed of in specialized wastewater injection wells.

However, according to reports, the sheer number of such wells has led to capacity problems and rising underground pressure.

The first signs of serious trouble emerged earlier this year, when the Texas Railroad Commission issued notices to companies applying for wastewater disposal well permits in the basin.

The notices warned of ground pressure issues linked to wastewater disposal and said the number of new permits would be restricted.

“Wastewater disposal has resulted in widespread increases in reservoir pressure that may not be in the public interest and may harm mineral and freshwater resources in Texas,” the commission wrote in letters sent in May.