On May 7, 2014, WildEarth Guardians filed a complaint in the US District Court, District of Utah, Central Division, against the US Forest Service and the US Bureau of Land Management, seeking to enjoin these agencies from approving oil and gas drilling in the Ashley National Forest, located in the Uinta Basin.
In a Record of Decision (ROD) based on a Final Environment Impact Statement (FEIS) and other documents, the Forest Service approved a 400-well project on February 12, 2012. This 400-well project on 162 well pads is being developed on 25,900 acres in the Ashley National Forest and will require the surface disturbance of 836 acres, 57 miles of new roads, 493 stripped acres for well pads, four four-acre compressor stations and 87 miles of natural gas pipeline.
WildEarth Guardians argue that the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management “failed in their legal obligations to take a hard look at the impacts of the 400-well Project on sage grouse [considered to be a threatened and endangered species], roadless areas and air and water quality and,…to prevent and mitigate the adverse consequences the project will have on these natural resource values.”
The agencies also failed to examine alternative actions that would allow development while still protecting sage grouse and roadless areas and while moving toward compliance with air and water quality standards.
On May 12, 2014, the Center for Biological Diversity filed a formal protest with the Bureau of Land Management, opposing an upcoming oil and gas lease sale in Nevada that could open up more than 174,000 acres for oil and gas development, including hydraulic fracturing.
The group complains that the Bureau failed to adequately analyze the project’s impacts to water resources, air, wetlands, riparian zones, climate and sensitive species of plants and wildlife, including the sage grouse. The Center wants the Bureau to cancel the Nevada lease sale or, at a minimum, defer the sale until deficiencies in the Bureau’s environmental assessment can be addressed.
On May 16, 2014, WildEarth Guardians issued a statement complaining about a proposed 5,000-well fracking project covering 1.5 million acres in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming, threatening the sage grouse population and greatly increasing greenhouse gas emissions.
This post was written by Barclay Nicholson (barclay.nicholson@nortonrosefulbright.com or 713.651.3662) from Norton Rose Fulbright's Energy Practice Group.
Showing posts with label Utah. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Utah. Show all posts
EPA reviews states’ solid waste management regulations for oil and gas operations
In an April 1, 2014 memorandum, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) summarized state regulatory programs concerning the management of solid waste from oil and natural gas exploration, development and production (E&P) operations.
In reviewing each state’s regulations, the EPA focused on surface storage and disposal facilities managing produced waters, drilling muds, drilling cuttings, hydraulic fracturing return fluids, and various other waste liquids and materials intrinsically related to oil and gas E&P.
The EPA found that the state regulations were primarily concerned with the “technical requirements associated with the design, construction, operation, maintenance, closure, and reclamation of surface pits, ponds, lagoons or tanks, as well as financial assurance requirements associated with such facilities.”
Among the common parameters are state requirements for liners in pits and impoundments, secondary containment requirements for tanks, set-back requirements, and various inspection requirements. However, the EPA did find gaps in regulations relating to groundwater monitoring, leachate collection, air monitoring, and waste characterization.
Overall, with the review, the EPA had developed an understanding of the wide-range of state regulatory programs currently in place in the twenty-six (26) oil and gas producing states covered in the summary.
This post was written by Barclay Nicholson (barclay.nicholson@nortonrosefulbright.com or 713.651.3662) from Norton Rose Fulbright's Energy Practice Group.
In reviewing each state’s regulations, the EPA focused on surface storage and disposal facilities managing produced waters, drilling muds, drilling cuttings, hydraulic fracturing return fluids, and various other waste liquids and materials intrinsically related to oil and gas E&P.
The EPA found that the state regulations were primarily concerned with the “technical requirements associated with the design, construction, operation, maintenance, closure, and reclamation of surface pits, ponds, lagoons or tanks, as well as financial assurance requirements associated with such facilities.”
Among the common parameters are state requirements for liners in pits and impoundments, secondary containment requirements for tanks, set-back requirements, and various inspection requirements. However, the EPA did find gaps in regulations relating to groundwater monitoring, leachate collection, air monitoring, and waste characterization.
Overall, with the review, the EPA had developed an understanding of the wide-range of state regulatory programs currently in place in the twenty-six (26) oil and gas producing states covered in the summary.
This post was written by Barclay Nicholson (barclay.nicholson@nortonrosefulbright.com or 713.651.3662) from Norton Rose Fulbright's Energy Practice Group.
Utah's Mining Board Approves Fracking Rule to Set Standards for Operation
Effective November 1, 2012, operators must report “the amount and type of chemicals used in a hydraulic fracturing operation . . . to www.fracfocus.org within 60 days of hydraulic fracturing completion for public disclosure.” Utah Admin. Code R. 649-3-39.1.
While this rule contains no exemption for trade secrets, Utah’s trade secrets laws may protect some of the additives used during the hydraulic fracturing process from public disclosure.
The Utah hydraulic fracturing rule can be found at https://fs.ogm.utah.gov.
This article was prepared by Barclay R. Nicholson (bnicholson@fulbright.com or 713 651 3662) from Fulbright's Energy Practice.
This article was prepared by Barclay R. Nicholson (bnicholson@fulbright.com or 713 651 3662) from Fulbright's Energy Practice.
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