Insight and Information on the Oil, Gas, Pipeline, & Mining Industries
With the federal Department of Transportation’s recent emergency order impacting those who transport crude oil by rail, state governments are likewise considering additional regulatory oversight that could affect the industry in the wake of recent train derailments such as the one yesterday in Virginia.
In Minnesota, where more than 800 tank cars carrying oil…
On March 19, the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board (EQB) approved its proposed model standards for local silica sand mining regulations and planning. The standards are intended to serve as guidelines for city and county governments as they work to develop their own local ordinances for mining, processing, and transporting silica sand. The Minnesota Legislature mandated…
In response to questions raised by the petrochemical industry, the federal Department of Transportation (USDOT) amended its emergency order restricting those who transport crude oil by rail in the United States last Thursday. Among other revisions, the amended order requires that shippers test their oil cargoes with sufficient frequency to ensure that their hazardous…
In response to safety concerns over trains carrying crude oil extracted from Bakken shale, the federal Department of Transportation (USDOT) issued an Emergency Restriction/Prohibition Order yesterday, affecting all those who transport crude oil by rail in the United States.
Specifically, the USDOT stated that its investigations into train accidents and derailments in North Dakota…
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a rule that would require notification to EPA before manufacturing, importing or processing a particular type of chemical commonly used in hydraulic fracturing operations. These chemicals, described as quaternary ammonium compounds, are used in fracking fluids to eliminate bacteria in the water that produces corrosive by-products.
Continue Reading EPA Requires Reporting of Certain Chemical Compounds Used in Fracking
The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC) extended the period for comments on its proposed regulations governing hydraulic fracturing. The deadline for written comments is now April 1, 2013, and the public hearing has been rescheduled to April 4, 2013.
Continue Reading Alaska Extends the Comment Period for its Fracking Regulations
