On March 11, 2014, the White House Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) received an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) from the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concerning the reporting of hydraulic
fracturing chemicals under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Responding to a petition filed under
TSCA section 21 by environmental groups, the EPA plans to initiate rulemaking
proceedings under TSCA sections 8(a) and 8(d) to obtain data on chemical
substances and mixtures used in hydraulic fracturing. While granting the
request to initiate rulemaking proceedings, the EPA stated that it “is not
committing to a specific rulemaking outcome.”
The EPA plans to develop the ANPR and “initiate a
stakeholder process to provide input on the design and scope of the TSCA
reporting requirements that would be included in a proposed rule.”
Anticipating discussions with the states, industry, public interest groups and
members of the public, the EPA wants to avoid duplication of efforts, “to
ensure any reporting burdens and costs are minimized,” and to determine “how
information that is claimed Confidential Business Information could be
aggregated and disclosed to maximize transparency and public understanding.”
Previously the EPA rejected
a request by the same environmental groups to require manufacturers and
processors to test hydraulic fracturing fluid chemicals for toxicity under TSCA
section 4.
This post was written by Barclay Nicholson (barclay.nicholson@nortonrosefulbright.com or 713.651.3662) from Norton Rose Fulbright's Energy Practice Group.
