By Kevin A. Fritz and Craig B. Simonsen
The Secretary of Energy Advisory Board (SEAB)’s FracFocus 2.0 database houses information collected from Federal and State regulatory agencies required as part of their regulatory requirements to disclose the composition and quantities of fracturing fluids that are injected into unconventional oil and gas wells.
In 2013, Secretary of Energy Moniz charged SEAB…
Continue Reading Federal Energy Advisory Board Seeks Comment on Draft “FracFocus” Report
By Patrick D. Joyce, Philip L. Comella, and William R. Schubert
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Inspector General, in a February 5, 2014 memorandum, stated that it intends to evaluate how federal and state regulation of the hydraulic fracturing (fracking) industry has protected water resources and managed potential threats. “EPA’s Oversight of Hydraulic Fracturing Impact on…
Continue Reading EPA Eyes Potential Impact of Fracking on Water Resources
By James L. Curtis and Craig B. Simonsen
Members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Health Education Labor and Pensions, including sixteen Senators, have asked the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to extend its extended public comment period on its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica for a full ninety days.
We had previously blogged on…
Continue Reading Senators Ask OSHA to Consider the Fracking Industry Economy and to More Fully Extend the Comment Deadline for Proposed Silica Worker Exposure Hazards Rule
By Patrick D. Joyce, Philip L. Comella, and William R. Schubert
Illinois and California, two states that passed major pieces of legislation governing hydraulic fracturing (fracking) earlier this year, have just released drafts of the regulations that will implement their new laws.
What are the major issues? While the two States’ schemes are not identical (please see our previous…
Continue Reading Draft Fracking Regs Are Out In Illinois and California
By James L. Curtis and Craig B. Simonsen
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has extended the public comment period for an additional forty-seven days on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica. 78 Fed. Reg. 65242 (Oct. 31, 2013).
We had previously blogged on the significant OSHA proposal that is intended to lower worker exposure…
Continue Reading OSHA Extends the Comment Deadline for Proposed Silica Worker Exposure Hazards Rule
By James L. Curtis and Craig B. Simonsen
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has just proposed a rule that is intended to lower worker exposure to crystalline silica, which it claims “kills hundreds of workers and sickens thousands more each year.” 78 Fed. Reg. 56274 (September 12, 2013). The proposal is aimed at curbing lung cancer, silicosis, chronic obstructive…
Continue Reading OSHA Proposes Silica Worker Exposure Hazards Rule
Andrew H. Perellis and William R. Schubert
The Illinois General Assembly passed and Governor Pat Quinn signed into law a highly-publicized bill overhauling the regulation of hydraulic fracturing (fracking). Public Act 098-0022, Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act. The new Illinois scheme will be among the most stringent and comprehensive in the Country, and a likely model for other States seeking…
Continue Reading Illinois Enacts Stringent Fracking Legislation
On February 16, 2012 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released three general permits for stormwater discharges from construction sites that will be in effect in states where EPA has primary authority over the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program: Idaho, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Territories and…
Continue Reading Stormwater Permits Update – Construction Sites
