Across the United States, truck drivers are hauling oil and gas waste containing radioactive materials at levels more than 2,000 times the federal legal cargo limit. Many have no HAZMAT certification. Some don’t even know what’s in the tank.
Fracking generates large volumes of chemical-filled wastewater for every barrel of oil produced. Federal law requires companies to test waste for hazardous materials before loading it onto trucks. Drivers and operators say that requirement goes largely ignored. As a result, truckers hit the road without proper training, certification, or protective equipment.
What’s in the Waste
Fracking waste contains drilling fluids, sludge, sands, and brine. It can carry lead-210, benzene, radium-226, and radium-228 — substances linked to bone cancer, blood disorders, liver damage, kidney disease, and leukemia. Hydrogen sulfide gas has killed workers outright. At lower levels, it causes neurological and respiratory damage. Drivers face exposure through inhalation, skin contact, and residue on their hands and clothes.
Drivers Speak Out
In interviews conducted by Earthjustice, drivers described the daily reality of hauling toxic waste without adequate protection.
Jane, a 12-year veteran hauling fracking wastewater in the Permian Basin, described constant exposure. “Personal protective equipment does not shield you from harm completely because waste goes through clothes and gloves,” she said. “There have been times when my skin has broken out, and when I blow my nose, there’s something black and brown that will come out.”
Tom McKnight, a retired driver who hauled oil and gas waste in the Ohio River Valley for six years, got a cancer diagnosis in 2019. “I would like to see responsible steps taken to be able to still do the same work without a negative impact on people,” he said. “There has to be a way.”
Billy Randel, a retired HAZMAT driver and leader of Truckers Movement for Justice — representing an estimated 15,000 drivers — put it plainly. “Drivers don’t even know what the hell they’re trucking,” Randel said. “You bring it home in work clothes. Your wife might use that car for the weekend. What do you think — that stuff just disappears?”
The Legal Fight
Earthjustice filed a letter to the DOT on behalf of TMJ demanding immediate HAZMAT enforcement for oil and gas waste transport. Although oil and gas waste has carried an EPA exemption since 1988, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration says it still qualifies as a hazardous material under DOT rules. HAZMAT classification would require proper driver training, licensing, insurance, and rerouting away from residential areas and schools.
Earthjustice Senior Attorney Megan Hunter framed it simply. “The oil and gas industry enjoys so many legal loopholes that deprive workers and communities of information about the toxic exposures they face,” Hunter said. “It’s important that the oil and gas industry pay the cost of what it’s doing.”
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