RegScan, a developer of regulatory compliance products, and the Independent Petroleum Association of America (IPAA) have jointly come up with a system to help oil and natural gas operators comply with the different well stages in the Marcellus Shale basin.

The IPAA Environmental Compliance System, powered by RegScan, is a compliance system outlining regulatory requirements throughout the life cycle of a well. Four major topics are covered, including pre-drilling, drilling and completion, well production and operation, and well plugging and abandonment.

The system, which is now available, provides producers with individual state compliance forms and guidance on how to manage the compliance of a project in three states — Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia. New York is not included because of the moratorium on shale gas drilling there, said Robert Land, vice president of engineering and marketing at RegScan in Williamsport, PA.

He noted that the cost of the product depends on the size of the operator. For a small producer, the cost could be as low as $2,600 for an entire year, while big producers could be charged tens of thousands of dollars, Land said.

He noted that the company currently is working on similar products for Colorado, Wyoming, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma. He projected that they should all be available by June.