{"id":4171,"date":"2013-05-17T18:35:06","date_gmt":"2013-05-17T23:35:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=4171"},"modified":"2017-01-24T11:31:51","modified_gmt":"2017-01-24T17:31:51","slug":"is-blm-phoning-it-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2013\/05\/17\/is-blm-phoning-it-in\/","title":{"rendered":"Is BLM Phoning It In?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Source: Soundcheck-WNYC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Yesterday<\/a> the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released a new draft of its so-called \u201cfracking rule.\u201d To be fair, the proposed rule does represent a level of progress compared to sorely outdated rules on the books. But we\u2019re dealing with critical issues here \u2013 not the kinds of things we can afford to only get half right.\u00a0 And unfortunately, \u201chalf right\u201d is about all we got here.<\/p>\n

The most significant failings of the proposed rule have to do with well integrity \u2013 the way an oil or gas well is constructed and operated to minimize risks to the environment and public safety<\/a>. Proper casing, cementing and pressure management are critical to protecting groundwater resources and the lives of the men and women who work the rigs. The rule takes steps in the right direction, but it doesn\u2019t include nearly the level of detail necessary to ensure casing is set where it\u2019s needed, operators are getting good cement jobs and the whole system is checked for mechanical integrity at critical points in the well development process.<\/p>\n

The rule also falls short on chemical disclosure. We\u2019re pleased to see the agency propose the same basic disclosure framework that has already been established by leading states \u2013 including requirements that operators disclose all <\/em>chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing fluids (not just chemicals subject to OSHA reporting), and requirements to post the information on a user-friendly,\u00a0publicly\u00a0accessible website like FracFocus. But the proposal is far too weak on trade secrets. For the public to have confidence trade secret protections aren\u2019t being abused, there needs to be a clear path for challenging trade secret assertions and policing the system<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Finally, while we recognize that you can\u2019t address every issue in a single rule, it\u2019s still worth noting two areas where agency rules are in glaring need of an overhaul. First, BLM needs to improve its rules for the handling, storage and disposal of the huge volumes of wastewater produced by unconventional oil and gas operations (the proposed rule merely asks operators to submit a plan). Second, BLM needs to adopt requirements to minimize emissions of methane \u2013 a highly potent greenhouse gas \u2013 and other contaminants that create local and regional air quality problems like they\u2019re seeing in Colorado and Wyoming<\/a>. There\u2019s long been talk of dealing with methane emissions at BLM, but so far we\u2019ve yet to see action. We hope that changes soon.<\/p>\n

Moving forward, EDF will submit detailed comments on this rulemaking; and we\u2019ll keep pressing for new and better rules on methane, waste and other key issues. We\u2019ll work with other NGOs<\/a>, state and federal regulators, forward-thinking companies and anyone else who\u2019s willing to come to the table in good faith and help BLM complete their assignment and improve their grade. As the nation\u2019s largest land holder \u2013 with almost 40 million acres leased for oil and gas development, and more than 12 million already under production \u2013 it\u2019s critical that BLM set the highest standards for operations on these important public lands. Nothing less than excellence will do.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Yesterday the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released a new draft of its so-called \u201cfracking rule.\u201d To be fair, the proposed rule does represent a level of progress compared to sorely outdated rules on the books. But we\u2019re dealing with critical issues here \u2013 not the kinds of things we can afford to only get …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5630,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[103943,693],"tags":[206,84855,17769,84859],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-4171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blm-methane","category-natural-gas","tag-blm","tag-colorado","tag-hydraulic-fracturing","tag-wyoming"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nIs BLM Phoning It In? - Energy Exchange<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2013\/05\/17\/is-blm-phoning-it-in\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is BLM Phoning It In? - Energy Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Yesterday the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released a new draft of its so-called \u201cfracking rule.\u201d To be fair, the proposed rule does represent a level of progress compared to sorely outdated rules on the books. 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