A bill that outlines regulations for the oil and gas industry has been sent to the governor for his approval.

SB 790 has ping-ponged in the General Assembly throughout this year.

It was formally presented to the Gov. Tom Wolf for consideration on Nov. 18.

The state Senate concurred on amendments made in the House on the 17th.

The most notable amendment centers on a thorny problem that originated in Warren County — the original Senate bill included language that would have paved the way for oil and gas wastewater — brine — to be spread on dirt roads as a dust suppressant and de-icer.

The original bill — with brine language — narrowly passed in the Senate in October 2019.

Back in January, the House struck language from the bill that would have created a path for the use of brine.

State Representative Kathy Rapp voted in favor of that version of the legislation back in May while state Senators Scott Hutchinson and Michele Brooks supported the measure last week.

The genesis of a de facto state-wide moratorium placed on brine spreading dates to a 2017 appeal filed by a Farmington Township resident, Siri Lawson.

She challenged a permit that the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) had issued to a local firm that had been contracted by the township to spread brine on dirt roads in the township.

The state’s Environmental Hearing Board ultimately dismissed Lawson’s petition but not until DEP acknowledged in a filing that brine should be classified as a residual waste under the Solid Waste Management Act.

Since that decision last May, DEP has essentially had to go back to the drawing board to develop regulations and procedures on this issue and the General Assembly has considered — but not passed — any potential solution.

Gov. Wolf has yet to act on SB 790.