Frackademia in Depth | Public Accountability Initiative
February 11, 2015
Physicians Scientists & Engineers for Healthy Energy released a working paper analysis,
December 13, 2014
Toward an understanding of the environmental and public health
impacts of shale gas development: an analysis of the peer-reviewed
scientific literature, 2009-2014. Dec. 10, 2014
Physicians Scientists & Engineers for Healthy Energy released a working paper analysis, statistical evaluation of the approximately 400 peer-reviewed studies to date on the impacts of shale gas development. In short, they examined what percentage of papers indicated risks/adverse impacts versus no indication of risk.
highlights:
- 96% of all papers on health indicate risks/adverse health outcomes;
- 95% of all original research studies on air quality indicate elevated concentrations of air pollutants;
- 72% of original research studies on water quality indicate contamination;
- and there is a recent explosion in the number of peer-reviewed publications, with approximately 73% of all available peer-reviewed papers published in the past 24 months and a current average of one paper published each day.
IPCC – Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
August 28, 2014
IPCC – Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The Fifth Assessment Report (AR5) provides a clear and up to date view of the current state of scientific knowledge relevant to climate change. It consists of three Working Group (WG) reports and a Synthesis Report (SYR) which integrates and synthesizes material in the WG reports for policymakers. The SYR will be finalized on 31 October 2014. Further information about the outline and content and how the AR5 has been prepared can be found in the AR5 reference document andSYR Scoping document, AR5 page and on the websites of the working groups.
AR5 Media Portal
Outreach Calendar
Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change
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The Working Group III contribution assesses the options for mitigating climate change and their underlying technological, economic and institutional requirements. It transparently lays out risks, uncertainty and ethical foundations of climate change mitigation policies on the global, national and sub-national level, investigates mitigation measures for all major sectors and assesses investment and finance issues.
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Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability
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The Working Group II contribution considers the vulnerability and exposure of human and natural systems, the observed impacts and future risks of climate change, and the potential for and limits to adaptation. The chapters of the report assess risks and opportunities for societies, economies, and ecosystems around the world.
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UNCONVENTIONAL OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT Key Environmental and Public Health Requirements
August 10, 2014
www.gao.gov/assets/650/647782.pdf.
September 2012
GAO-12-874
United States Government Accountability Office
GAOUnited States Government Accountability Office
Highlights of GAO-12-874, a report to congressional requesters
summary chart on pg 51 of regulatory exemptions for O and G development
September 2012
UNCONVENTIONAL OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT
Key Environmental and Public Health Requirements
Why GAO Did This Study
Technological improvements have
allowed the extraction of oil and natural
gas from onshore unconventional
reservoirs such as shale, tight
sandstone, and coalbed methane
formations. Specifically, advances in
horizontal drilling techniques combined
with hydraulic fracturing (pumping
water, sand, and chemicals into wells
to fracture underground rock
formations and allow oil or gas to flow)
have increased domestic development
of oil and natural gas from these
unconventional reservoirs. The
increase in such development has
raised concerns about potential
environmental and public health effects
and whether existing federal and state
environmental and public health
requirements are adequate.
GAO was asked to review
environmental and public health
requirements for unconventional oil
and gas development and (1) describe
federal requirements; (2) describe
state requirements; (3) describe
additional requirements that apply on
federal lands; and (4) identify
challenges, if any, that federal and
state agencies reported facing in
regulating oil and gas development
from unconventional reservoirs. GAO
identified and analyzed federal laws,
state laws in six selected states
(Colorado, North Dakota, Ohio,
Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wyoming),
and interviewed federal and state
officials and representatives from
industry, environmental, and public
health organizations.
GAO is not making recommendations.
In commenting on the report, agencies
provided information on recent
regulatory activities and technical
comments.
What GAO Found
As with conventional oil and gas development, requirements from eight federal
environmental and public health laws apply to unconventional oil and gas
development. For example, the Clean Water Act (CWA) regulates discharges of
pollutants into surface waters. Among other things, CWA requires oil and gas
well site operators to obtain permits for discharges of produced water—which
includes fluids used for hydraulic fracturing, as well as water that occurs naturally
in oil- or gas-bearing formations—to surface waters. In addition, the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) governs the management and disposal
of hazardous wastes, among other things. However, key exemptions or
limitations in regulatory coverage affect the applicability of six of these
environmental and public health laws. For example, CWA also generally
regulates stormwater discharges by requiring that facilities associated with
industrial and construction activities get permits, but the law and its regulations
largely exempt oil and gas well sites. In addition, oil and gas exploration and
production wastes are exempt from RCRA hazardous waste requirements based
on a regulatory determination made by the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) in 1988. EPA generally retains its authorities under federal environmental
and public health laws to respond to environmental contamination.
All six states in GAO’s review implement additional requirements governing
activities associated with oil and gas development and have updated some
aspects of their requirements in recent years. For example, all six states have
requirements related to how wells are to be drilled and how casing—steel pipe
within the well—is to be installed and cemented in place, though the specifics of
their requirements vary. The states also have requirements related to well site
selection and preparation, which may include baseline testing of water wells
before drilling or stormwater management.
Oil and gas development on federal lands must comply with applicable federal
environmental and state laws, as well as additional requirements. These
requirements are the same for conventional and unconventional oil and gas
development. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oversees oil and gas
development on approximately 700 million subsurface acres. BLM regulations for
leases and permits govern similar types of activities as state requirements, such
as requirements for how operators drill the well and install casing. BLM recently
proposed new regulations for hydraulic fracturing of wells on public lands.
Federal and state agencies reported several challenges in regulating oil and gas
development from unconventional reservoirs. EPA officials reported that
conducting inspection and enforcement activities and having limited legal
authorities are challenges. For example, conducting inspection and enforcement
activities is challenging due to limited information, such as data on groundwater
quality prior to drilling. EPA officials also said that the exclusion of exploration
and production waste from hazardous waste regulations under RCRA
significantly limits EPA’s role in regulating these wastes. In addition, BLM and
state officials reported that hiring and retaining staff and educating the public are
challenges. For example, officials from several states and BLM said that retaining
employees is difficult because qualified staff are frequently offered more money
for private sector positions within the oil and gas industry.
View GAO-12-874. For more information,
contact David C. Trimble at (202) 512-3841 or
trimbled@gao.gov. Page i GAO-12-874 Unconventional Oil and Gas Development
Letter 1
summary chart on pdf pg 51 (p. 44 printed text) of regulatory exemptions for O and G development
;
Table 2: Exemptions or Limitations in Regulatory Coverage for the Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Industry in Six
Environmental Laws
Law Description of exemption or limitation in regulatory coverage Source
Type of program related to
exemption or limitation in
regulatory coverage
Preventive Response
SDWA Hydraulic fracturing with fluids other than diesel fuel does not require a
UIC permit.
Statutory (2005) X
CWA Federal stormwater permits are not required for uncontaminated
stormwater at oil and gas construction sites or at oil and gas well sites.
Statutory (1987,
2005) X
CAA Emissions of hazardous air pollutants from oil and gas wells and their
associated equipment may not be aggregated together or with those of
pipeline compressors or pump stations to determine whether they are
a major source.
Statutory (1990)
X
In the Risk Management Program, many naturally-occurring
hydrocarbons in oil and gas are not included in the threshold
determination of whether a facility should be regulated.
Regulatory/EPA
decision (1988) X
RCRA Oil and gas exploration and production wastes are not regulated as
hazardous waste.
Regulatory/EPA
decision (1988) X
CERCLA Liability and reporting provisions do not apply to injections of fluids
authorized by state law for production, enhanced recovery, or
produced water.
Statutory (1980)
X
EPCRA Oil and gas well operations are not required to report releases of listed
chemicals to the TRI.
Regulatory/EPA
decision (1997) X
Source: GAO.
Note: In some cases, states may have requirements in these areas. State requirements are
discussed in the next section of this report.
B
Anthropogenic emissions of methane in the United States
November 25, 2013
Anthropogenic emissions of methane in the United States
Significance
Successful regulation of greenhouse gas emissions requires knowledge of current methane emission sources. Existing state regulations in California and Massachusetts require ∼15% greenhouse gas emissions reductions from current levels by 2020. However, government estimates for total US methane emissions may be biased by 50%, and estimates of individual source sectors are even more uncertain. This study uses atmospheric methane observations to reduce this level of uncertainty. We find greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and fossil fuel extraction and processing (i.e., oil and/or natural gas) are likely a factor of two or greater than cited in existing studies. Effective national and state greenhouse gas reduction strategies may be difficult to develop without appropriate estimates of methane emissions from these source sectors.
Commentary on the study:
Bridge Out: Bombshell Study Finds Methane Emissions From Natural Gas Production Far Higher Than EPA Estimates | ThinkProgress.
Huffington Post coverage:
NY Times coverage:
Harvard University Press Release:
Link to Study:
Anthropogenic emissions of methane in the United States
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/11/20/1314392110.abstract
Danger If Ohio Watershed Conservancy District Leases Reservoirs for Fracking – damascus citizens for sustainability
November 14, 2012
The Rubin report, “Hydrogeologic Concerns Regarding Hydraulic Fracturing within the Muskingum River Watershed in Eastern Ohio with Justification & Recommendations in Support of a Drilling Moratorium within Reservoir Watersheds and Statewide Legislation Banning Hydraulic Fracturing,” is available at http://hydroquest.com/Hydrofracking/.
GDACC 
