What's $80,000 to a frac sand mine?

For some people, it's a house. For others, it's a car... or two. Or maybe student loan debt. For some frac sand mines, it's a few hours, if that.

Last month Alpine Sand, operating near Arcadia, in Trempealeau County, was fined $80,000 for violating storm water regulations. Their facility was originally cited by the DNR in October 2012 for mismanaging storm water. Then sand and sediment washed into a tributary of Newcomb Valley Creek on multiple occasions in 2013.

What does $80,000 mean to a frac sand mine?

According to the Wall Street Journal, in April the going rate for frac sand was $56 per ton (not including transportation or handling costs). We know that Alpine Sand is permitted to haul 180 loads a day from this particular mine. If we assume that one truckload typically carries about 20 tons (a figure I have heard for other operations), then we might estimate that Alpine Sand moves about 3,600 tons per day.

That means they move about $201,600 worth of sand, daily. If they operate every day, that's $1,411,200 per week. Eighty grand doesn't seem to represent a very big dent in their revenue stream.

What does such a modest fine mean for frac sand mining in general? Well, the Wall Street Journal recently boasted about a Texas-based investment firm striking it rich with Wisconsin frac sand, scoring gains of $1.4 billion on a $91 million investment. Read that again. $1.4 billion. Billion.

I wonder if an $80,000 fine will really encourage these out-of-state billionaires to take environmental standards seriously?

Mine Waste and Pollution Concerns

Investigative reporter Tony Kennedy recently wrote for the Star Tribune about waste water and pollution concerns involving frac-sand mining in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Over the past year, holding ponds at mine sites have failed during heavy rains, releasing sandy sediment and processing water. In some cases, the material has contaminated public waters, threatening to suffocate fish eggs, kill aquatic plants, and otherwise harm fish habitats. Kennedy reports that the WI DNR has cited nearly 20 frac-sand mines for alleged violations of water regulations.

Speaking on behalf of the Wisconsin Industrial Sand Association, Rich Budinger blames small, inexperienced sand companies and heavy rains, and says existing storm water regulations are sufficient.

In addition to holding ponds, Kennedy describes how sand mines create waste material consisting of clay and undersized sand, often called "fines." This material is in part generated during the processing or washing of frac sand, which separates fines from the desired product. The murky wash water containing the fines is then treated with flocculants, chemicals "that cause suspended particles to sink so that the water can be reused." Once separated from the water, the fines are piled as waste material, eventually plowed back into the ground during mine reclamation.

At the Preferred Sands site in Blair, WI, waste piles have absorbed rain water and spilled onto adjacent land on at least two occasions, "trashing the interior of a house, flowing into a garage on another property and fouling a wetland."

Kennedy also reports that state officials and some frac-sand companies are concerned about the widespread use of polyacrylamide, a chemical in the flocculants. "Polyacrylamide contains residual amounts of acrylamide, a neurotoxin linked to cancer and infertility." While polyacrylamide is thought to degrade safely when stored above ground, concerns emerge when the chemical is improperly buried with mine waste. Polyacrylamide and another flocculant chemical called polydadmac have recently been added to the Health Department's list of "chemicals of emerging concern."

Source:  Kennedy, Tony. 2013. Pollution worries abound in frac sand waste streams. Star Tribune, July 13.