A bill to regulate the disposal of waste produced by gas-well drilling will likely be introduced by the governor in a special session.
Lawmakers who negotiated a version both sides could agree on were unable to get the measure passed before midnight Saturday, the deadline for the regular session.
Earlier in the session, the House of Delegates held a public hearing on the issue. But members could not agree on the terms of the bill and late Saturday evening it ended up in a conference committee.
The bill would only allow seven landfills in the state that have already applied to do so to create a separate area on their properties where they could store the waste. Those landfills are located in the Northern Panhandle and Northwest portion of the state.
The measure calls for the waste to be separated from municipal waste and monitored for radioactivity. It also requires drilling companies to pay an extra $1 per ton of waste. The first $750,000 will go toward a scientific study of the drill cuttings, the rest to road repairs in drilling counties.
Senator Herb Snyder said the bill was good news for the environment.
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