Oversight

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter welcomed the Marcellus Shale Coalition (MSC) and the Shale Gas Insight 2012 Conference last week, but he warned the industry to do more to earn the public’s trust that hydraulic fracturing (fracking) is safe.

Former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell told attendees of a Philadelphia clean energy conference that he believes hydraulic fracturing (fracking) can be done safely, but added that he supports the de facto moratorium on drilling in the Delaware River Basin and would even back a genuine one.

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) issued its first two nonbinding advisory opinions on local drilling ordinances, part of its new responsibilities to ensure that localities are in compliance with Act 13, the state’s new omnibus Marcellus Shale law.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has extended by 45 days the comment period for its proposed guidance to oil and natural gas producers on using diesel fuel in hydraulic fracturing (fracking) “in response to requests from several stakeholders.” The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on Wednesday also extended the comment period for its proposed fracking rule, setting the new date of Sept. 10.

Focusing on the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) on Wednesday made a pitch for more rules to cover the handling of wastewater produced in hydraulic fracturing (fracking) with the release of a new NRDC report.

As was expected, Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman on Tuesday signed into law a measure allowing the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) to resume its review and oversight of an alternate route for the northern portion of the Keystone XL oil pipeline project. It is effective Wednesday.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Division of Market Oversight Tuesday issued an advisory reminding market participants that any claimed bona fide hedge exemption from speculative position limits under the Dodd-Frank reform act would be subject to a special call in connection with the claimed exemption.

Officials with the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Thursday fired off a letter to the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) about its intention to regulate hydraulic fracturing (fracking).

Still stung from federal rebukes of its past natural gas pipeline safety oversight in the wake of the San Bruno, CA, pipeline rupture in 2010, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is looking at ways to elevate safety considerations in all of its proceedings, including rate cases.