BLM has released a draft environmental analysis of the first proposed commercial oil production project in the Alaska National Petroleum Reserve. On February 21, 2014, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published a notice seeking public input on the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the proposed Greater Mooses Tooth Unit 1 (GMT1),… Keep reading →
President Obama’s Senior Advisors today recommended he veto two new energy bills which respectively seek to block Interior Department regulations on hydraulic fracturing and speed up oil and gas drilling permits. On November 19th, 2013, the White House Administration issued a pair of statements strongly opposing two new energy bills: (1) H.R. 2728 – Protecting… Keep reading →
It’s day two of the federal government shutdown, and there’s no real sense yet of how long it might last. In the meantime, investment bank Simmons & Co has helpfully laid out some possible effects on the oil and gas industry, depending on its duration. This could include delays to additional Department of Energy approvals for… Keep reading →
Alaska Governor Sean Parnell is “outraged” by reports of intimidation and needless show of force by Department of Environmental Conservation, the Bureau of Land Management and the state Department of Environmental Conservation who wore body armor to investigate a potential Clean Water Act violation, according to a statement released yesterday. “A State DEC Environmental investigator… Keep reading →
The House Natural Resources Committee has advanced a bill aimed to protect states’ rights in regulating hydraulic fracturing and prevent duplicative federal regulations. On July 31, 2013, the House Natural Resources Committee approved the Protecting States’ Rights to Promote American Energy Security Act (H.R. 2728) aimed to prevent duplicative hydraulic fracturing regulations on federal lands… Keep reading →
An industry economic analysis report estimates that BLM’s revised draft of regulations governing hydraulic fracturing on public lands would cost at least $345 million. On July 22, 2013, the Western Energy Alliance and the Independent Petroleum Association of America released an analysis of compliance costs of the Department of Interior’s (DOI) revised draft rule… Keep reading →
Those solar zones that the Obama administration has created on public lands in the West, they’re for solar. No mining allowed. The Bureau of Land Management made this temporary ban a long-term thing earlier this month, putting 475 square miles in six western states off-limits to new mining claims for the next 20 years. It’s a move… Keep reading →
The following is an excerpt from an Energy Solutions Forum Policy Primer for the New York Energy Week Series Breakfast, Solar Financing Market Perspectives. Solar energy provides significant amounts of electricity with no direct greenhouse gas emissions. Investment tax credits for solar energy projects, federal funding programs and renewable energy portfolios have increased the industry’s ability… Keep reading →
California regulators released the state’s first draft regulations for hydraulic fracturing. The industry views the move as a positive start to drive oil and gas development in California, which has some of the strictest well safety regulations. The move could result in dramatic expansion of drilling activities in the state’s Monterey Shale, a major oil play that could substantially contribute to the domestic energy supply.
On December 18, 2012, California’s Department of Conservation released preliminary regulations for hydraulic fracturing, after a series of public discussions held this year to address environmental concerns. The draft rules, if passed, would require drilling companies to test well integrity and report test results to regulators before beginning fracturing operations. The proposal also seeks to require companies to maintain an online database of fracturing locations and chemical composition of fracturing fluids. It would however, provide an exemption for operators seeking protection for proprietary chemical composition information. The formal rulemaking process, expected to begin in early 2013 with further public hearings, could be finalized in about one year. Keep reading →
The Interior Department won’t rush its regulations for hydraulic fracturing on federal land because if drilling there isn’t done safely, it “could create an Achilles heel for natural gas” and hinder production across the U.S., says Interior Secretary Ken Salazar.
Speaking to the National Press Club, April 24, Salazar said the new rules would be issued “soon,” and would undergird the Obama administration’s commitment to a “robust natural gas agenda.” Keep reading →
