CAPP Unveils Hydraulic Fracturing Guidelines

- CAPP Unveils Hydraulic Fracturing Guidelines

Friday, September 09, 2011
Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers

Canadian natural gas producers on Sept. 8 announced new guiding principles for hydraulic fracturing that guide water management and improved water and fluids reporting practices for shale gas development in Canada. The principles were created by members of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) and apply to all CAPP natural gas producing members, large and small, operating in Canada.

“Protecting Canada’s water resources is fundamental to our social licence to operate and to grow,” said CAPP president Dave Collyer. “Canada’s upstream industry has a strong track record as a safe and reliable producer of natural gas. With the increase in natural gas production from unconventional sources such as shale, Canadians have told us they want more information as to how industry uses and protects water. We respect that request, and these CAPP principles articulate our water management objectives and water protection practices, as well as our focus on improving our water performance over time.”

CAPP’s guiding principles for hydraulic fracturing apply in all jurisdictions in which the upstream industry operates in Canada. They were created with the understanding that some provinces are working on regulation, and we expect the principles to complement potential future regulatory requirements.

Canada has abundant unconventional natural gas resources, including shale gas. Technological innovations, particularly horizontal multi-well pad drilling and hydraulic fracturing, have made it possible for industry to economically develop shale gas resources in tight rock formations. The application of hydraulic fracturing technology requires the use of significant quantities of water, which necessitates increased focus by industry on both water use and water quality.

“The Canadian natural gas industry supports all regulations that govern hydraulic fracturing, water use and water protection, because we recognize water is a valuable resource,” said Michael McAllister, executive vice-president of Encana. “Strong regulations exist in regions of active unconventional gas development. Similar regulations are being developed in regions with an emerging unconventional natural gas sector, to ensure protection of water resources and provide the public confidence that these resources are being developed responsibly.”

The guiding principles for hydraulic fracturing are available on CAPP’s website at capp.ca . CAPP is also developing recommended practices to support the guiding principles for hydraulic fracturing. For example, a recommended practice describing CAPP member companies’ requirements for disclosure of fracturing fluid additives is under development. These recommended practices will be available on CAPP’s website as each is finalized.

The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) represents companies, large and small, that explore for, develop and produce natural gas and crude oil throughout Canada. CAPP’s member companies produce more than 90 per cent of Canada’s natural gas and crude oil. CAPP's associate members provide a wide range of services that support the upstream crude oil and natural gas industry. Together CAPP's members and associate members are an important part of a national industry with revenues of about $100 billion-a-year. CAPP’s mission is to enhance the economic sustainability of the Canadian upstream petroleum industry in a safe and environmentally and socially responsible manner, through constructive engagement and communication with governments, the public and stakeholders in the communities in which we operate.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too
LINK

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.

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

New Fracturing Disclosure Rules May Take Awhile

- New Fracturing Disclosure Rules May Take Awhile

Wednesday, June 01, 2011
Houston Chronicle
by Tom Fowler

Texas lawmakers have passed a bill requiring disclosure of most of the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, a natural gas and oil production technique that has been a source of contention in some communities over the past year.

A final version of the bill sent to Gov. Rick Perry on Tuesday requires oil and gas well owners to file online forms detailing the chemicals that are mixed with sand and water and then pumped into wells at high pressure to break apart dense shale formations.

Opponents say the materials, often called frac fluids, can contaminate ground water supplies -- a worry the industry says is unfounded.

It may be up to two years before the law takes full effect, as the Texas Railroad Commission has to write the rules and submit them to public comment.

Commission Chairman Elizabeth Ames Jones said Tuesday the agency will begin crafting the rules soon, but the law gives it until July 1, 2013, to approve them. The Railroad Commission is the state's chief oil and natural gas regulator.

"A commonsense frac fluid disclosure policy will balance the Railroad Commission's dual mission to prevent the waste of Texas' energy resources, and to protect the environment and the public's health and safety," Jones said.

Under existing rules, companies must list just some of the chemicals used in fracturing on Material Safety Data Sheets, documents kept on worksites to help officials respond to emergencies such as spills or accidental exposures to hazardous chemicals. Some chemicals are exempt if the companies claim they are trade secrets, while others simply aren't covered by the requirements.

The industry voluntarily has begun sharing fracturing fluid information from the data sheets for specific wells through a website, FracFocus.org, in response to public concerns about hazardous chemicals.

The new Texas law makes that reporting mandatory for all wells drilled in Texas, and will require listing of chemicals not currently required on the data sheets.

The new law still exempts chemicals deemed trade secrets, but the landowner where the well is drilled, an adjacent landowner or a state agency can appeal the exemption.

The bill, introduced by Rep. Jim Keffer, R-Granbury, is the result of negotiations among industry, environmental groups and lawmakers.

A version of the bill discussed last week would have made it more difficult for the public to access some of the information by requiring reports be filed just with the Railroad Commission. But an amendment introduced by Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth, required disclosure on public websites.

The Texas Oil and Gas Association praised the bills.

"As a result of the state's leadership, Texas will become a game changer when it comes to debunking myths or misconceptions about hydraulic fracturing," said Debbie Hastings, vice president of environmental affairs for the group. "The transparency and accessibility achieved by this legislation will reinforce how and why hydraulic fracturing has been safely used for more than 60 years."

The Environmental Defense Fund gave the bill mixed reviews, saying it's a milestone in some ways but has shortcomings that should discourage other states or the federal government from adopting it without revision.

"It represents a major shift in the debate because for the first time industry and Republican lawmakers acknowledge that disclosure should be mandatory and that it should address all fracturing chemicals that may be harmful to public health and the environment," said Matt Watson, senior energy policy manager for EDF. "Texas and the nation will be better off for it."

But it leaves the decision on disclosure exemptions with the Texas Railroad Commission, which Watson said tends to favor business interests.

The long timetable for new rules is also a concern, Watson said.

Ramona Nye, a spokeswoman for the Railroad Commission, said the commission "has discretion regarding this process for any particular rule-making and may hold workshops, stakeholders meetings or other opportunities to gather information before drafting a rule proposal."

Chairman Jones' chief of staff, Andrew Keefer, said discussions of the new rules may begin in late June.

"The intent is to get it done as quickly as possible," Keefer said, but public comments can drag the process out.

Copyright (c) 2011, Houston Chronicle

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

Exxon Mobil CEO Defends Hydraulic Fracturing

- Exxon Mobil CEO Defends Hydraulic Fracturing

Friday, May 27, 2011
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas
by Jack Z. Smith

An obviously frustrated Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson jumped to the defense of hydraulic fracturing Wednesday while taking verbal pokes at the news media's reporting on the controversial process used to extract more oil and natural gas from rock formations.

Hydraulic fracturing, dubbed "fracking," has not been confirmed as the cause of contamination of water wells or aquifers in a single instance, Tillerson said during the company's annual shareholders meeting at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas.

A resolution calling for the company's board of directors to prepare a report on "known and potential impacts of Exxon Mobil's fracturing operations" was defeated after receiving support from 28.2 percent of shares voted.

The company opposed the measure, saying it operates "in an environmentally responsible manner," issued public statements about fracking and believes a report is unnecessary.

The Rev. Michael Crosby, a Franciscan friar from Milwaukee who deals with corporate responsibility issues, said at the meeting that Exxon "has not provided sufficient information" about its fracturing operations. "Shareholders have no way of assessing the risks and rewards," he said.

In a news conference after the meeting, Tillerson said that, in cases where groundwater supplies have been polluted, a likely cause is underground migration of methane gas or other contaminants as a result of old wells not having been "drilled as they should" in the 1920s, '30s or '40s.

In earlier decades, drilling regulations were not as exacting and industry technology was much less advanced.

"More often than not," cases of groundwater pollution are "not associated with any current-day activities," Tillerson said.

He also said that, in areas such as North Texas, extensive use of water wells has resulted in large withdrawals from aquifers, which could contribute to movement of potential contaminants such as methane gas into the aquifers.

Tillerson said fracking, which has drawn heavy media attention in recent years, has been portrayed as "something new and futuristic" while "in fact, this technology has been around 50 to 60 years."

Irving-based Exxon Mobil has been drawn into the debate on hydraulic fracturing after its acquisition last year of Fort Worth-based XTO Energy, a major shale-gas producer.

That acquisition made Exxon Mobil the largest natural gas producer in the U.S.

By adding XTO, "we have created the premier unconventional gas company," Tillerson told shareholders.

The company is now considering budding shale plays worldwide and is partnering with the French oil firm Total to explore for shale gas in Poland.

With a surge in U.S. shale-gas drilling, pioneered in North Texas' Barnett Shale, advanced horizontal drilling and fracturing techniques have led to much bigger "frack jobs" in completion of wells. But the fractures occur thousands of feet below freshwater aquifers and extend no more than about 400 feet upward, industry experts say.

The Environmental Protection Agency has launched a detailed study of fracking, and University of Texas researchers are taking an in-depth look as well.

Various other scientific and environmental groups have also examined the process.

Tillerson told reporters that fracking has a bad rap partly because of "you guys" in the media.

Exxon Mobil plans an advertising campaign "to reach out to the public with fact-based information" about fracking and other drilling issues, Tillerson said.

"We have some problems in getting out the message with some of you folks," he told reporters. "So we have to go out and buy some of the space" in which to present the industry's viewpoint, he said.

Tillerson said some fracking critics have made "pretty casual statements ... that have not been backed up with any kind of facts."

But the As You Sow Foundation -- a nonprofit organization that backed resolutions at the Exxon Mobil and Chevron shareholders meetings calling for more information about fracking -- said the 28.2 percent favorable vote at the Exxon meeting and 41 percent by Chevron shareholders show that "mainstream investors are concerned about fracking and want more disclosure."

Copyright (c) 2011, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas

Oil & Gas Post

Promote Your Page Too

EPA to Shed Light on Fracturing Rules

EPA to Shed Light on Fracturing Rules

Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Houston Chronicle
by Jennifer A. Dlouhy

Federal regulators will soon clarify the rules for natural gas companies that inject diesel fuel into the ground as part of their hydraulic fracturing operations, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday.

The guidance, which EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson says is coming "very shortly," is meant to clear up rules for natural gas producers.

A congressional investigation concluded earlier this year that companies have not secured EPA permits before injecting more than 32 million gallons of diesel fuel and other fluids into the ground in fracturing operations between 2005 and 2009.

States historically have regulated hydraulic fracturing. The technique involves injecting mixtures of water, sand and chemicals including diesel fuel deep underground at high pressures to break up dense shale rock and release gas locked in it. Although Congress exempted most hydraulic fracturing activities from EPA's jurisdiction as part of a 2005 rewrite of the Safe Drinking Water Act, that exception does not apply to diesel -- even though the government only began to regulate it last year.

Jackson insisted that the EPA has authority to regulate diesel fuel in fracturing fluids.

"Our belief is that this is not exempt," she said. "That exception specifically says that diesel is not exempt. So if you are injecting diesel, that is a concern."

Environmental worries

The move comes amid mounting environmental fears about the hydraulic fracturing process, which is being combined with horizontal drilling techniques to extract previously unrecoverable natural gas from shale formations across North America.

Conservationists are concerned about the high water demands of fracturing. Environmentalists warn that natural gas can escape out of poorly designed wells and that chemicals in fracturing fluids can taint nearby water sources.

A blowout at a Chesapeake Energy natural gas well in Pennsylvania last week renewed those fears. The incident prompted the company to temporarily stop hydraulic fracturing in the region.

Easing public concerns about the process is key to natural gas development, said Gene Sperling, the chairman of the White House's National Economic Council.

Speaking at an Energy Information Administration conference, Sperling said the energy industry should embrace "common-sense regulation that builds the public trust" that fracturing does not put at risk clean or safe drinking water.

Industry representatives broadly have argued against federal regulation of hydraulic fracturing and insist state officials are better positioned to oversee the work. Although some oil field services companies and natural gas producers have begun voluntarily providing details about the ingredients of their fracturing fluids, there is no federal mandate for that disclosure.

Backing from Shell

Marvin Odum, the president of Shell Oil Co., said the company "supports regulations that require companies to disclose the chemicals they use in the process ... and adhere to the highest safety standards."

"Responsible operators should have no problem complying," Odum added.

Odum said that Shell is working toward a goal of recycling 100 percent of the water it uses in its hydraulic fracturing operations.

He insisted that hydraulic fracturing techniques can be used to extract natural gas safely.

"Make no mistake," he said. "It can be done without harming the environment. Anything less is unacceptable."

Internet Registry Opens for Hydraulic Fracturing Chemicals

Internet Registry Opens for Hydraulic Fracturing Chemicals

Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Rigzone Staff
by Karen Boman

The Ground Water Protection Council and the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission on Monday launched a new website that allows oil and gas companies to disclose the chemical additives used in the hydraulic fracturing process on a well-by-well basis.

Chesapeake Energy has announced its active participation in the site, which is receiving funding support from the U.S. Department of Energy. The website will cover information on wells drilled starting with 2011.

Hydraulic fracturing fluid is used in developing deep shale horizontal wells, and is comprised of a mix of water and sand with small amounts of chemical additives to enhance production from otherwise inaccessible oil and gas reserves. Water and sand generally comprise about 98 percent of hydraulic fracturing fluid volume.

Chesapeake reports that it began loading well completion data onto the registry on Feb. 15, 2011, for wells where completion reports have been filed with the appropriate state agencies. Information has been uploaded covering 94 wells in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wyoming.

"Providing further information about our drilling, completing and producing operations in today's environment is more critical than ever, and we believe this new public registry provides an immediate, workable and accurate way to present information about the additives of our hydraulic fracturing operations to all of our stakeholders," said Chesapeake CEO Aubrey K. McClendon.

Twenty-four companies have registered as participants on the website, and 11 of these companies, including Chesapeake, have begun using the website to provide detailed information about the additives in their hydraulic fracturing operations.

The website, www.fracfocus.org, includes information about how hydraulic fracturing works, about the chemicals used and how fresh ground water is protected. The website may also be used by the public.