Protection

In a second appeal of court denials, an anti-oil/natural gas hydraulic fracturing (fracking) initiative from a group of Colorado teenagers gained traction last week as a three-judge panel at the state Court of Appeals supported the teenagers’ contention in a 2-1 decision that public health and environmental protections must be clearly in place before any new drilling is allowed. The ruling has no immediate impact on the state’s energy regulatory approach.

California Public Utilities Commission(CPUC) safety staff on Monday levied a $2.25 million citation against Sempra Energy’sSouthern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) for 45 instances of failing to promptly correct deficiencies found in its corrosion control in parts of its natural gas pipeline system. During two gas safety inspections last year, the CPUC’s Safety and Enforcement Division (SED) found that SoCalGas failed to fix cathodic protection packages for periods in some cases of more than three years. Cathodic protection helps prevent corrosion. Federal regulations require gas operators to test systems at least once each year, with intervals not exceeding 15 months, to determine whether the protection is adequate. SED found numerous SoCalGas cathodic protection packages to be deficient for intervals exceeding federal and state standards.

California Public Utilities Commission(CPUC) safety staff on Monday levied a $2.25 million citation against Sempra Energy’sSouthern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) for 45 instances of failing to promptly correct deficiencies found in its corrosion control in parts of its natural gas pipeline system. During two gas safety inspections last year, the CPUC’s Safety and Enforcement Division (SED) found that SoCalGas failed to fix cathodic protection packages for periods in some cases of more than three years. Cathodic protection helps prevent corrosion. Federal regulations require gas operators to test systems at least once each year, with intervals not exceeding 15 months, to determine whether the protection is adequate. SED found numerous SoCalGas cathodic protection packages to be deficient for intervals exceeding federal and state standards.

A consent decree was approved Wednesday for XTO Energy Inc. to pay a $100,000 fine for discharging 50,000 gallons of toxic wastewater illegally in 2010 at a Marcellus Shale well site in Pennsylvania.

A rulemaking designed to strengthen environmental protection performance standards governing the natural gas industry has been given a cautionary green light by Pennsylvania regulators, with the final outcome to be determined following an extended public comment period.

USGS said the “California Seafloor Mapping Program” has peeled back “a veil of water just offshore of California,” revealing the ocean’s floor in significantly new detail. “New imagery, specialized undersea maps, and a wealth of data from along the California coast are now available,” a USGS spokesperson said.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has finalized its air quality permit criteria, and said it will no longer unconditionally waive operators from the requirement that they submit an air quality plan prior to regulatory approval of unconventional drilling sites.

Republican leaders on the House Energy and Commerce Committee have asked U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy to explain how the agency’s forays into three controversial sites will affect its comprehensive study of hydraulic fracturing (fracking).

The Senate Thursday confirmed Gina McCarthy to head the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), ending a four-month long stalemate between Republicans and Democrats over her controversial nomination.