Wastewater tracking bill introduced
http://citizensvoice.com/news/wastewater-tracking-bill-introduced-1.908232
Wastewater tracking bill introduced
BY ELIZABETH SKRAPITS (STAFF WRITER)
Published: July 29, 2010
State Rep. Phyllis Mundy, D-Kingston, said Wednesday she is introducing legislation that would create a system for tracking and reporting the disposal of the polluted water that is a byproduct of natural gas drilling.
“My legislation would allow the public to track wastewater produced by this quickly growing industry from cradle to grave,” Mundy said in a prepared statement. “It would help promote public confidence that natural gas well operators are following the law on the treatment and disposal of wastewater, which can contain brine and chemicals.”
Companies with natural gas wells in the Marcellus Shale already have to make semi-annual production reports to the state Department of Environmental Protection. Mundy’s proposed legislation would expand that to include the wastewater from hydraulic fracturing of natural gas wells, and DEP would make the information available on its website.
Hydraulic fracturing, also called “fracking,” involves blasting millions of gallons of chemical-treated water thousands of feet underground to break up the shale and release natural gas.
Mundy explained the bill, which she worked on with Penn Future, is to ensure the chemical and salt-laden wastewater isn’t dumped where it’s not supposed to be.
“I think that’s a concern people have: where’s the water coming from, and where are they disposing of it?” she said. “Because it’s toxic and it’s polluting. We want to know where it’s going.”
Mundy previously introduced House Resolution 864, which urges Congress to pass U.S. Sen. Bob Casey’s Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act.
The FRAC Act is intended to close the “Halliburton Loophole” in the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, which exempts oil and gas companies from restrictions on hydraulic fracturing near drinking water sources. The FRAC Act would also require oil and gas companies to disclose all the chemicals in their hydraulic fracturing solutions.
Casey announced Wednesday provisions from the FRAC Act have been included in the Clean Energy Jobs and Oil Company Accountability Act, which will be considered ion the Senate floor.
“This is great. The more activity the better,” Mundy said when told about the new development. However, she noted, “There’s many a slip between introducing the legislation and getting it passed into law, at any level.”
If the Clean Energy Jobs and Oil Company Accountability Act doesn’t pass by the time the state legislature reconvenes in September, Mundy said she will urge leaders to bring her resolution up for vote, to show support for Casey’s efforts.
Mundy also sponsored two other pieces of natural gas drilling-related legislation. One is House Bill 2609, which would establish a one-year moratorium on issuing of new natural gas well drilling permits to give state officials more time to put appropriate regulations in place.
The other is House Bill 2608, which would prohibit natural gas companies from drilling horizontal wells or doing hydraulic fracturing within 2,500 feet of a drinking water source, instead of the current restriction of 100 feet.
eskrapits@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2072
Two Oil-Field Companies Acknowledge Fracking With Diesel
February 19, 2010
Two Oil-Field Companies Acknowledge Fracking With Diesel
By MIKE SORAGHAN of Greenwire
Two of the world’s largest oil-field services companies have acknowledged to Congress that they used diesel in hydraulic fracturing after telling federal regulators they would stop injecting the fuel near underground water supplies.
Halliburton and BJ Services acknowledged to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in January 2008 that they had used diesel in the controversial process that has expanded access to vast natural gas plays.
Read More
Sen. Bob Casey Jr. (D-Pa.) on fracking
http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/76719-congress-returns-to-full-plate
01/18/10
Sen. Bob Casey Jr. (D-Pa.) on fracking
In the House on Wednesday, Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), through the Energy and Commerce Energy and Environment subcommittee he chairs, will review a plan by ExxonMobil to buy XTO Energy for $31 billion.
The hearing is also likely to delve into the topic of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” a technique to blast water, chemicals and sand underground to create cracks for natural gas to flow through. Energy companies have used the practice for decades, but as huge natural-gas reserves have been discovered in shale deposits underlying populated areas in New York and Pennsylvania, new concerns have been raised about whether fracking is properly regulated.
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) and Sen. Bob Casey Jr. (D-Pa.) have introduced bills that would end the exemption fracking now has from the Safe Drinking Water Act and require companies to disclose the chemicals they use in the process.
ExxonMobil included a clause in its bid to buy XTO that it could back out of the deal if Congress moves to regulate hydraulic fracturing. Industry contends federal regulation is unnecessary, given state regulations. Energy companies also say more regulation will slow production of an important “bridge fuel,” so labeled because natural gas emits less carbon dioxide than do other fossil fuels, allowing time for renewable energy resources to develop.