Commissioner Seeks to Complete Rule-Making on Fracturing Bill a Year Early

- Commissioner Seeks to Complete Rule-Making on Fracturing Bill a Year Early

Friday, June 03, 2011
Rigzone Staff

Texas Railroad Commissioner (TRC) David Porter said would push the Railroad Commission (RRC) to complete the entire rule-making process requiring disclosure of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing a year ahead of the deadline set in recent legislation.

The Texas Legislature on May 31 sent a bill to Governor Rick Perry on requiring the RRC to write disclosure rules for hazardous chemicals by July 1, 2012. The bill requires the RRC to complete rule-making for all other chemicals used in the process by July 1, 2013.

"In order for Texans to maintain confidence in the oil and gas industry, it is important for us to get this done as quickly as possible," said Porter. "Hydraulic fracturing has been an economic driver for Texas, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs and adding billions of dollars to local economies. We are currently seeing record activity in the Eagle Ford Shale due to hydraulic fracturing which is why I am creating a task force to study these very issues. We need to assure the public that hydraulic fracturing is safe and responsible – and has been for the past sixty years – and we need to do it now."

The RRC will begin the rule-making process at its next open conference this month and will hold open meetings throughout the state in coming months to garner public comment.

Porter said the agency may increase the number of members on TRC's newly formed Eagle Ford shale task force from the original plan for between 15 to 18 members due to the quality of applications. TRC is reviewing applications now and hopes to have selected all members of the voluntary task force, which will include a mix of energy industry members, local environmental groups, elected officials and landowners in the Eagle Ford shale area of South Texas, by the end of June.

TRC decided to form the Eagle Ford shale task force to head off the perception and communication problems encountered with the Barnett shale gas drilling boom hit Texas. "We're trying to be proactive, not reactive," Porter said.

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'Fracking' Deemed Eco-Safe at Hearing

'Fracking' Deemed Eco-Safe at Hearing

Thursday, April 14, 2011
Tulsa World, Okla.
by Jim Myers

Oklahoma Corporation Commissioner Jeff Cloud told key U.S. senators that his agency's record on protecting water from pollution makes it clear that states, not the federal government, should regulate hydraulic fracturing.

The decades-old practice has helped spark a natural-gas boom in parts of the country, along with growing controversy.

"During more than half a century of hydraulic fracturing experience, there has not been a single documented instance of contamination to groundwater or drinking water as a result of hydraulic fracturing," Cloud told the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

That record, he said, covers more than 100,000 wells in Oklahoma.

Cloud's testimony triggered praise from an unlikely source, Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., who not only led the hearing into natural-gas drilling and public health but who also represents a state that has imposed a moratorium on "fracking operations."

Cardin was critical of both the industry, which he accused of failing to meet even minimally acceptable performance levels for protecting human health, and regulatory agencies that in his view also have failed to do what is necessary to protect drinking water supplies.

What especially impressed Cardin was Cloud's explanation that Oklahoma requires the fluids used in fracking to be either recycled or injected into wells.

Cloud repeatedly offered assurances that those fluids never get into the state's water.

Cardin urged other states to follow Oklahoma's lead.

"I think we need to learn from best practices, and we have seen some of that catch on from other states," he said, also citing the record in Colorado.

In some areas, the fluids reportedly are taken to municipal wastewater treatment plants.

Sen. Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, the committee's top Republican and a key player on environmental issues in Congress, also welcomed Cloud's testimony about the state's "long and successful history of regulating hydraulic fracturing."

"Oklahoma has long been a leader in natural gas production, and hydraulic fracturing plays a key role in providing affordable domestic energy," Inhofe said.

Tuesday's hearing came as natural gas is generating more attention, both negative and positive, as an alternative to oil as a transportation fuel. Rising oil prices and an abundance of domestic natural gas have sparked the interest of politicians, but environmental concerns accompanying the gas boom have prompted states like Maryland and New York to step back from increased drilling activity.

Sen. Robert Casey, D-Pa., is sponsoring legislation to repeal the so-called loophole for the industry and require the disclosure of chemicals used in fracking.

Casey admitted that for decades his state did not take the correct approach to regulating coal mining. Today, he said, "we have to get it right on natural gas."

According to Cardin, who cited a number of violations, and statements from others at the hearing, Pennsylvania is still struggling when it comes to regulation.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also did not escape critical questions, especially concerning its take on the use of diesel fuel in fracking and whether firms that use diesel fuel must apply for a permit.