Rules

The governor and air quality regulators in Colorado are seeking broad-based input and support for a new set of air emissions rules applied to oil and natural gas drilling as evidenced by Gov. John Hickenlooper’s move on Monday to assure a smooth regulatory process.

New Brunswick could see C$13 million in development for every shale gas well drilled in the province, opening up opportunities for the province to prosper, according to an analysis by Deloitte. However, a recent poll found that critics of development are gaining support.

Even as an administrative process is ongoing to hammer out new state rules on hydraulic fracturing (fracking) by oil/gas regulators, the California Senate on Thursday passed on a 27-11 vote a measure (SB 4) to cover chemical disclosure requirements and public notice before fracking can take place. It drew short, at the industry’s urging, of placing any moratorium on the practice for an interim period.

As a formal set of proposed rules on hydraulic fracturing (fracking) moves through preliminary public review in California, Gov. Jerry Brown last Wednesday expressed confidence that his state’s oil and gas regulators would apply “science and common sense” to frack regulations.

In a case with a significant potential impact in several states, an Ohio appeals court on Tuesday ruled that a municipality in Summit County exceeded its authority when it ordered a Utica Shale driller to stop operations, dealing a blow to local ordinances, or “home rule” laws.

The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) on Tuesday approved RRC staff-recommended revisions to proposed changes to commission rules governing casing, cementing, drilling and completion of wells; cathodic protection wells; and seismic holes and core holes. Changes were initially proposed in September in response to action by the Texas Legislature. The revised proposal for changes takes into account responses received by commission staff during a public comment period. The current 45-day public comment period will end at noon April 1. A public hearing is scheduled for 1:30 CST Feb. 21 at the RRC’s Austin office.

The New Mexico Oil Conservation Commission (OCC) resumed hearings Thursday on rules for handling oil and natural gas drilling waste, but it alienated environmental groups by refusing to take additional testimony in the year-old case.

Just days before a 30-day public comment period in New York on proposed rules governing high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) expires, three influential state lawmakers are calling for the comment period to be suspended, citing a lost state report on the practice that surfaced earlier this month.

Elected officials in the Town of Chenango, NY, voted 3-2 to reject a moratorium on local ordinances that, if enacted, would have delayed permitting for oil and natural gas activities, including hydraulic fracturing (fracking), within the Broome County town’s limits.