Produced Water Accounting & Management Trends (Texas & New Mexico)

by Laura Capper | EnergyMakers Advisory Group

Explore key takeaways from Laura Capper’s presentation at the NM Produced Water Research Consortium's 2026 Mid-Year Review. Discover how New Mexico’s expanding role in Permian Basin oil and gas production is driving regional water market spending toward a projected $16B by 2030, alongside critical advancements in treatment technologies, cross-industry transfers, and beneficial reuse.

Research Overview and Updates on Produced Water Characterization, Treatment and Reuse

by Dr. Pei Xu | NMSU NMPWRC

This presentation covers key takeaways from the NM Produced Water Research Consortium's 2026 Mid-Year Review, detailing how the organization is advancing science-based frameworks to evaluate the safety, treatment, and beneficial reuse of produced water. The research highlights a risk-based "NPDES+" chemical characterization approach to evaluate over 430 individual analytes, alongside multi-barrier desalination technologies capable of purifying water to meet drinking water standards. Additionally, the study incorporates toxicological screening using artificial intelligence and live biological models, complemented by promising greenhouse trials demonstrating that treated produced water with total dissolved solids of 1000 milligrams per liter or less can safely support native crop growth and maintain soil health.

Toxicological Safety and Environmental Impact Evaluation of Treated Produced Water from the Permian Basin

by Yanyan Zhang and John Xu | NMSU NMPWRC

This presentation evaluates the toxicological safety and environmental impact of treating produced water (PW) from the Permian Basin using various thermal and membrane processes. Conducting independent, science-based research using Whole Effluent Toxicity (WET) assays, human cell line exposures, mouse toxicity studies, and mosquito biological models, the researchers compared raw, distillate/permeate, and post-treated effluents against control groups. The findings demonstrate that while raw produced water and unpolished distillates exhibit significant toxic effects—including cell mortality, metabolic stress, and organ tissue changes—implementing appropriate post-treatment polishing (such as GAC, zeolite, or specialized purification) effectively eliminates these adverse effects. Across long-term exposures, the fully post-treated water showed no significant negative impacts on organism survival, growth, histology, or gene expression, supporting its potential safety for fit-for-purpose reuse applications. 

New Water for New Mexico: Science, Scarcity and Solutions

by Ryan Hall | NGL Energy Partners

This presentation examines the critical water scarcity challenges facing New Mexico farmers in the Rio Grande region and explores the potential of treating oil and gas produced water (PW) as a viable supplemental water resource. Highlighting data from the Permian Basin in Lea and Eddy counties, where hundreds of millions of barrels of produced water are generated annually, the presentation addresses the economic significance of oil and gas revenue to the state's General Fund alongside the urgent need for beneficial reuse outside the oil industry. Through scientific evaluations, pilot treatment studies, and regulatory discharge permitting data—including active projects near the Texas border and TCEQ permit frameworks—the slides demonstrate how advanced multi-process treatment trains can effectively treat produced water to safe, dischargeable standards, turning industrial byproduct into a potential solution for regional water scarcity.

A Comprehensive Approach to Beneficial Reuse

by Dr. Chad Unrau | Western Midstream

This presentation explores how treated oil and gas produced water (PW) can serve as a non-potable water resource to help address New Mexico’s severe water scarcity. Grounded in more than 24 months of real-world pilot testing and over 50,000 water quality data points, the presentation highlights how advanced multi-barrier treatment technologies can reliably purify produced water to stringent discharge and reuse standards. Highlighting data from the Permian Basin—where over 20 million barrels of produced water are generated daily—the presentation details a collaborative Joint Industry Project (JIP) involving major operators, independent research institutions like the NMPWRC and TPWC, and regulatory bodies. The slides demonstrate how proven technologies, extensive chemical and toxicity testing, and built-in system redundancy can safely turn an industrial byproduct into a reliable water supply, laying the foundation for JIP2 and future commercial-scale deployment. 

Produced Water Forum: Overcoming Regulatory Challenges, Building Trust

by Carol Booth | Ground Water Protection Council

This presentation provides an overview of the Ground Water Protection Council’s (GWPC) initiatives to facilitate the beneficial reuse of produced water as a supplement to freshwater resources. Grounded in data from GWPC’s reports showing that approximately 25.8 billion barrels of produced water were generated in 2021, with nearly 96% disposed of via underground injection, the presentation highlights multi-stakeholder efforts to transition produced water management toward beneficial reuse. Featuring insights from state regulatory surveys, multi-module task force goals, and the GWPC Produced Water Forum held in Oklahoma City, the slides outline key recommendations to advance reuse. These include establishing regulatory certainty and end-use standards, funding visible community demonstration projects, building public trust through transparent science and independent validation, and developing economic market strategies to align regional water supply with local demand.

Produced Water Characterization Across the Permian Basin: Emerging Findings from the Texas Produced Water Consortium

by Dr. Shane Walker | Texas Produced Water Consortium

This presentation covers key research on treating and reusing produced water in the Permian Basin. Researchers evaluated water quality, environmental impacts, and treatment technologies across several pilot projects. Tests showed that treated water can be safely used for crops without harming plant growth. Advanced filtration systems successfully removed over 99 percent of salts, organic material, and other contaminants, producing clean water that meets drinking standards and shows no harmful toxic effects.

Produced Water Reuse in New Mexico

by Jennifer Bradfute and Matthias Sayer | WATR Alliance

This presentation addresses the regulatory barriers, governance, and potential for scaling the reuse of treated produced water outside the oil and gas sector in New Mexico. It highlights the core issue of shifting regulatory identities, where produced water is managed under state oil and gas authorities during operations but triggers different environmental regimes when used externally. To establish a clear permitting pathway, Petition 26-18 proposes amendments to 20.6.8 NMAC to create four distinct permit classes (Class A through Class D) covering closed-loop industrial systems, ground discharge, surface water discharge, and downstream non-discharge uses. These proposed rules aim to evaluate non-potable reuse through structured standards, phased implementation, and rigorous toxicity monitoring to safely keep New Mexico water resources in state.