{"id":18704,"date":"2019-01-10T10:07:17","date_gmt":"2019-01-10T15:07:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=18704"},"modified":"2019-02-25T10:13:00","modified_gmt":"2019-02-25T15:13:00","slug":"how-oil-gas-states-did-and-did-not-protect-land-and-water-in-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2019\/01\/10\/how-oil-gas-states-did-and-did-not-protect-land-and-water-in-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"How oil & gas states did (and did not) protect land and water in 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>By Adam Peltz<\/a> & Nichole Saunders<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Keeping an eye on what happens with domestic oil and gas regulation is a bit like herding cats. We\u2019ve seen encouraging progress on air quality issues related to oil and gas, but an equally critical front that\u2019s seen major action is protection of our land and water resources.<\/p>\n

More than 30 states actively regulate oil and gas development but their practices and rules vary significantly. Add the recent attention around industry\u2019s impact on local communities \u2013 from earthquakes and the risk of spills to increased traffic and local air pollution \u2013 and it\u2019s easy to miss the big trends that dominated regulatory agendas in 2018.<\/p>\n

EDF devotes a significant amount of time tracking this activity, and 2018 was a busy year. Over a dozen states completed rule updates and other types of improvements this year on a variety of topics.<\/p>\n

Here are the big things we saw in 2018.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Improving environmental integrity of gas storage<\/strong><\/p>\n

The massive Aliso Canyon gas leak<\/a> took place at the largest gas storage facility in the western U.S. over four months in 2015-2016. In that time it released five billion cubic feet of nearly pure methane, threatened more than 50,000 people and had the same climate impact as putting 600,000 cars on the road for a year.<\/p>\n

After the leak was stemmed, California began a comprehensive overhaul of its gas storage rules to address the deficiencies that allowed the Aliso Canyon incident to happen. This summer, the state finalized a new rule<\/a> that is the strongest in the country and a model for others. The rule includes groundbreaking provisions for risk management and emergency response planning and requires operators and local and state officials to prepare for any eventuality. States that might be considering gas storage rule upgrades, like Michigan, Illinois and Virginia, as well as the federal government, would do well to study California\u2019s approach.<\/p>\n

Plugging old wells<\/strong><\/p>\n

One of the trickiest areas of oil and gas regulation is making sure someone will pay to plug a well at the end of its life. Wells can operate for decades, but eventually their costs outweigh their revenues, and the wells must be plugged to prevent environmental hazards.<\/p>\n

Plugging costs vary widely, from tens of thousands to millions of dollars per well. If operators go bankrupt or don\u2019t set aside sufficient funds to pay for plugging their wells, states often use taxpayer dollars to fix the unplugged wells. These \u201corphan wells,\u201d<\/a> which nationally could number 500,000 or more, are a major liability for oil and gas states, especially in Appalachia.<\/p>\n

Many states have upgraded their orphan and inactive well programs. Alaska, Arkansas, Virginia, New Mexico, Michigan, West Virginia, Ohio, New York, Kentucky, California, Kansas and Colorado each developed rules, legislation or policy upgrades and efforts to address current and future orphan wells. Several Canadian provinces worked on this issue in 2018 as well.<\/p>\n

Many states still have a long way to go on this problem, but it is encouraging to see resources directed toward solving this difficult and crucial issue.<\/p>\n

Spill Clean-Up and Reporting Standards Need Work<\/strong><\/p>\n

Oil and gas operations can result in 10,000+ spills a year, and inadequate standards to detect, report and remediate spills and leaks put land, water and communities at risk. States need smart operating rules to prevent spills. But they should also have advanced detection, reporting and remediation requirements so that when accidents do happen, they are caught and remedied rapidly.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, in August, New Mexico adopted<\/a> some of the nation\u2019s weakest spill cleanup standards on chemicals like chloride and benzene that can spread easily through soil and groundwater. The rule also lacks requirements that landowners be informed of spills or leaks on their property and the actions taken to address them.<\/p>\n

When spills do occur, the standards for response and remediation must be strong enough to ensure that impacts are limited. But regulators cannot take smart action to reduce spills if basic reporting requirements are lacking. And in some cases, the reporting gap is huge. For example, Texas is the largest oil and gas producer in the county, yet the state does not require companies to report wastewater spills. This needs to change.<\/p>\n

Small issues, big progress <\/strong><\/p>\n

Though states often tackle rules in response to specific issues as they arise, some take a more proactive approach to keeping their regulatory house in order. A good example of this is North Dakota\u2019s biennial oil and gas rulemaking process, which is scheduled well in advance and covers anything legislatively mandated and whatever the North Dakota Industrial Commission staff deems deserving of modification.<\/p>\n

Finalized in April, this year\u2019s update contained two dozen environmental improvements, including the following requirements:<\/p>\n