The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed a draft Multisector General Permit (MSGP) under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program for stormwater discharges related to industrial activity. In Alaska, EPA has jurisdiction over NPDES permitting on federal property within Denali National Park, in federal waters (three miles or more offshore), and on certain

The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC) has proposed a repeal of regulation changes in 20 AAC 25. of the Alaska Administrative Code. Specific regulations proposed for repeal are as follows: 20 AAC 25.037 well control requirements for other drilling and completion operations; 20 AAC 25.047 reserve pits and tankage; 20 AAC 25.225 potential

Alaska’s oil and gas production tax has been subject to continuing debate and change as lawmakers and policymakers struggle with balancing budgets in times of volatile oil prices while also encouraging the investment necessary to monetize the state’s resources to run its government, create jobs, build and maintain infrastructure, and promote economic activity. In my

On October 4, 2017, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California held that the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) cannot postpone implementation of natural gas methane emission rules because such action would violate the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”).  Plaintiffs – the State of California, the State of New Mexico, and a coalition of seventeen conservation and tribal citizens groups (jointly “Plaintiffs”) – initiated the lawsuit in two separate actions.  Plaintiffs argued that postponing implementation of the BLM’s Waste Prevention, Production Subject to Royalties, and Resource Conservation Rule (“Final Rule”) after its effective date violated Section 705 of the APA.
Continue Reading Trump’s BLM Cannot Delay Implementation of Oil and Gas Methane Rules after Effective Date

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is poised to approve North Dakota’s application for primary enforcement authority over the underground injection of CO2 for geologic sequestration in that state.  Nearly four years after North Dakota became the first state to seek primacy from EPA over carbon sequestration wells – known as Underground Injection Control (UIC) Class VI wells – EPA just published the proposed rule to effect this delegation on Friday.  82 Fed. Reg. 22,949 (May 19, 2017).  The 60-day public comment period on the proposed delegation ends on July 18, 2017.
Continue Reading North Dakota’s UIC Class VI Primacy Wait is Almost Over

On January 6, 2017, the federal Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) issued a notice of Draft Resource Management Plan Amendment (“DRMP Amendment”) and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (“DEIS”) for oil and gas leasing and development on federal lands administered by the BLM, Central Coast Field Office (“Planning Area”).  82 Fed. Reg. 1754 (Jan. 6, 2017).  The DRMP Amendment and DEIS describe and analyze alternatives for the planning and management of leasing and development in the Planning Area, as required by the National Environmental Policy Act and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act.  The BLM administers approximately 284,000 acres of surface estate and 793,000 acres of federal mineral estate within the Planning Area.
Continue Reading Draft Resource Management Plan Amendment Released for Central California Federal Lands

As we discussed earlier, environmental activists have asked the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) to update its oil and gas drilling waste disposal rules under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”).  The groups sought to force the EPA’s hand by suing the EPA in an attempt to get a court order requiring the EPA to update its regulations.

Under RCRA, non-hazardous solid waste, which includes oil and gas production waste, is governed by Subtitle D. Subtitle D focuses on state and local governments as the primary regulating entities for the management of non-hazardous solid waste. It establishes minimum federal technical standards and guidelines for state solid waste regulations.  The EPA is required to review and approve state Subtitle D waste disposal programs to ensure that they meet the minimum standards.

Section 2002(b) of RCRA requires the EPA to review and, if necessary, revise at least once every three years the Subtitle D regulations. The activists have asked the EPA to revise its Subtitle D regulations and set clear requirements to govern the storage and disposal of oil and gas waste amid a “patchwork of [state] requirements with varying protections.”
Continue Reading Industry Groups Push Back Against Environmental Activists in Suit Over Oil & Gas Waste Disposal Regs.

Widely anticipated on both sides of the aisle, on May 12, 2016, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) released final regulations to curb emissions of methane and volatile organic compounds (“VOC”) from additional new, modified, and reconstructed sources in the oil and gas industry.  The Final Rule, titled,  ‘Oil and Natural Gas Sector: Emission Standards for New, Reconstructed, and Modified Sources’ (“Final Rule”), amends the new source performance standards (“NSPS”) for the oil and natural gas source category.  This action follows EPA’s publication of proposed regulations in August 2015, and is extremely significant because it is the first instance of such regulation of VOC and methane emissions by the EPA.  In addition to yesterday’s announcement, the EPA is completing final Control Techniques Guidelines for reducing VOC emissions from existing oil and gas sources in ozone nonattainment areas, which are expected to be released later this spring.

Background: The Climate Action Plan

Over the past few years, the Obama Administration has taken an aggressive stance on climate change regulation, and the Final Rule is the Administration’s most recent action to specifically address methane and short-lived climate pollutants.  In June 2013, the Administration released the Climate Action Plan which directed the EPA and other federal agencies to develop a comprehensive regulatory scheme to reduce methane emissions.  In March 2014, as a follow-up to the Climate Action Plan, the Obama Administration issued the Climate Action Plan: Strategy to Reduce Methane Emissions.Continue Reading EPA Issues Expansive, Costly New Source Performance Standards for Oil and Gas Sector