As the center of gravity for U.S. oil and gas production, Texas faces a unique regulatory environment.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) tightened its enforcement of industrial and hazardous waste compliance, and this matters because compliance requirements now carry greater financial and legal risks.
This article breaks down what is changing, what TCEQ is targeting, and what your facility needs to do right now to stay ahead of enforcement.
TCEQ vs. the Railroad Commission
Not all waste generated in Texas oil and gas operations is regulated by TCEQ.
The Texas Railroad Commission (RRC) regulates exploration and production (E&P) waste, including drill cuttings, produced water, completion fluids, and other waste streams directly associated with drilling and production.
These materials are generally exempt from RCRA hazardous waste regulation under the federal E&P exemption codified at 40 CFR Part 261.4(b)(5).
TCEQ’s authority begins where the RRC’s ends. If your facility is a midstream processor, a refinery, a compression station, or any surface operation that generates waste not directly tied to drilling or production, TCEQ is your regulator.
TCEQ administers Texas’s authorized RCRA program under 30 Texas Administrative Code (TAC) Chapter 335, the equivalent of the federal hazardous waste rules.
Used oil, spent industrial solvents, contaminated PPE, chemical residues, and process waste from surface facilities are NOT covered by the E&P exemption. They are subject to RCRA hazardous waste rules enforced by TCEQ.
The Texas Hazardous Waste Regulatory Framework
In 2023, TCEQ incorporated the core provisions of the updated RCRA regulations. The updated rules introduced changes that directly affect oil and gas surface facilities:
Generator Category Re-Evaluation
The rule requires generators to re-examine their category status (Large Quantity Generator, Small Quantity Generator, or Very Small Quantity Generator) on a month-by-month basis based on actual waste generation.
If a facility generates more than 1,000 kilograms of hazardous waste in any single month, it becomes an LQG for that month, triggering the full 90-day accumulation limit and LQG operational requirements.
Note On Texas VSQG Terminology
The federal rule renamed Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQGs) to Very Small Quantity Generators (VSQGs).
Texas has not adopted the VSQG designation. Texas facilities generating less than 100 kg/month continue to operate under the CESQG category per 30 TAC 335.
This distinction matters when interpreting federal-level guidance documents or training materials.
Episodic Generation Provisions
The rule established a formal process for generators that occasionally exceed their typical category thresholds, for example, during facility cleanouts or equipment changeouts.
Generators can apply for episodic generator status to manage one-time accumulation events without a permanent change in category. TCEQ has adopted this provision.
Container Management Updates
The rule clarifies and, in some cases, tightened labeling requirements, including the requirement that labels identify the types of hazardous waste and the applicable hazards.
Facilities using generic or incomplete labels are a consistent enforcement target of the TCEQ.
Used Oil is a Frequently Misclassified Stream in O&G Operations
Used oil is a commonly produced waste stream at oil and gas facilities, but it is often misclassified.
Under 30 TAC Chapter 324, Texas regulates used oil separately from hazardous waste, but the rules are specific.
The central compliance question for used oil at your facility is whether the oil is being managed as used oil (subject to Chapter 324 recycling standards) or has been mixed with listed hazardous waste, which would trigger RCRA hazardous waste classification for the entire mixture under the mixture rule.
If used oil is mixed with listed solvents, spent process chemicals, or other listed hazardous wastes, the resulting mixture is presumed to be hazardous waste regardless of the volume of the hazardous component.
Off-specification used oil burned for energy recovery must meet specific marketing and burning standards under 40 CFR Part 279, which Texas has adopted.
Storage tank integrity, labeling, and spill containment requirements under 30 TAC Chapter 324 apply to used oil stored on-site.
How Does TCEQ Enforce Hazardous Waste Regulations?
TCEQ’s enforcement activity has increased in scope and severity over the past several years. Several structural changes to TCEQ’s oversight are worth understanding if you manage waste compliance at a Texas industrial facility.
Higher Penalties, More Frequently
Under Texas Health and Safety Code Section 361.088, TCEQ can assess civil administrative penalties of up to $25,000 per day, per violation, for solid and hazardous waste violations.
Penalties for violations that result in environmental risk or involve repeated noncompliance now easily reach five to six figures.
In practice, penalties for substantive violations, meaning those that create actual environmental risk or involve repeated noncompliance, now routinely reach the five- and six-figure range.
Referrals to the Texas Attorney General
For facilities that fail to respond to TCEQ’s administrative process or that demonstrate a pattern of non-compliance across inspection cycles, TCEQ has increased its referrals to the Texas Attorney General’s Environmental Protection Division.
Enforcement actions through the AG’s office may result in injunctive relief, court-imposed penalties, and, in cases involving knowing violations, a criminal referral.
Supplemental Environmental Projects
TCEQ now routinely incorporates Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) into enforcement settlements.
A SEP allows a violator to reduce its cash penalty by agreeing to fund an environmental improvement project that benefits the affected community.
While SEPs can reduce the financial sting of a settlement, they require active management, community coordination, and often significant internal resources.
The Most Common TCEQ Violations at Oil and Gas Surface Facilities
TCEQ publishes enforcement and agreed publicly available orders, providing a useful window into the violations the agency most commonly cites.
For oil and gas surface operations, the following categories appear with the highest frequency:
1. Failure to Conduct Waste Determinations
Every waste stream generated at your facility must be characterized before it can be managed, stored, or disposed of.
RCRA and 30 TAC Chapter 335 require that generators either test their waste or apply knowledge of the waste-generating process to determine whether it is hazardous.
Facilities that manage waste without documented waste determinations face significant enforcement risk, particularly when TCEQ inspectors request supporting records.
For oil and gas surface facilities, the most commonly lacking proper determinations include spent degreasers and solvents, contaminated rags and absorbents, spent catalyst materials, heat exchanger cleaning waste, and laboratory samples that have exceeded their useful life.
2. Accumulation Time Limit Violations
LQG facilities must remove hazardous waste from the facility or transfer it to a permitted storage unit within 90 days of the accumulation start date.
SQG facilities have 270 days; if the waste needs to be transported more than 200 miles away, they have 180 days. TCEQ inspectors routinely review container labels and compare accumulation start dates to the inspection date.
Containers that have exceeded the time limit, even by a few days, are cited as violations.
3. Container Labeling Deficiencies
Under 40 CFR 262.17(a)(5) and corresponding Texas rules, hazardous waste containers must be labeled with the words ‘Hazardous Waste,’ a description of the contents, the applicable hazards, and the accumulation start date.
Missing start dates, incomplete hazard descriptions, and the use of informal chemical names rather than proper waste designations are the most common deficiencies.
4. Manifest Documentation Gaps
The hazardous waste manifest is the paper trail that supports the cradle-to-grave liability framework under RCRA.
Generators are responsible for ensuring that manifests are complete, accurate, and properly filed.
TCEQ has increased scrutiny of manifest discrepancy reports, return copies, and exception reporting obligations.
Facilities that cannot produce complete manifest records for all off-site shipments are exposed to both penalty and potential civil liability.
How To Stay Compliant In 2026 and Beyond
Given TCEQ’s increased enforcement activity, EHS managers at oil and gas surface facilities should treat the following as immediate action items rather than periodic review exercises.
Verify Generator Category Status Month by Month
Under the Generator Improvements Rule, your category can change month to month.
Review your waste generation records for the past 12 months and confirm whether your facility has exceeded SQG or LQG thresholds in any single month.
If it has, determine whether you applied the corresponding requirements during that period.
Retroactive compliance gaps are difficult to address after an inspection.
Conduct Inspections
Conduct a physical inspection of every satellite accumulation area and central accumulation area at your facility.
Check every container for a legible accumulation start date, proper labeling, closed containers, and compatibility with the waste it holds.
Compare start dates to the current date against your applicable time limit.
If any container is approaching its limit, escalate pickup scheduling immediately.
Confirm Your Used Oil Program is Documented
Make sure your used oil management program under 30 TAC Chapter 324 is documented, and that collection containers are properly labeled and maintained.
If any used oil streams may have been commingled with listed hazardous wastes, that determination needs to be made explicitly and documented.
Do You Have Used Oil Waste? Call HWH Environmental For A Free Quote.
If your Texas business has used oil or other hazardous waste, call HWH Environmental for a free quote. Our team has decades of experience working with businesses in Texas, so we understand the rules and regulations to keep your company in compliance.
Don’t hesitate, contact HWH Environmental today.
