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Today, Friday, March 20, the Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”), an agency within the Department of the Interior, published regulations for hydraulic fracturing on Federal and Indian lands.  The Final Rule becomes effective in 90 days and will impact about 2,800-3,800 wells each year.  In 2013, 90% of the 2,800 new wells on Federal and Indian lands were stimulated using hydraulic fracturing techniques, according to the BLM.  (Hydraulic Fracturing on Federal and Indian Lands, Final Rule, at p. 14.)  The regulations do not apply to fracking activity on private and state-owned land, where most of the fracking in the United States occurs.

Requirements under the Final Rule

The overarching purpose of the Final Rule is to provide a “baseline for environmental protection.”  (Id. at p. 12.)  Principally, a permit is required under existing oil and gas regulations.  Before beginning operations, an operator must submit an Application for a Permit to Drill (“APD”) to the BLM and wait for approval.  As the new regulations supplement the existing regulations, and do not replace them, this permit requirement will continue under the new regulations.Continue Reading Obama Administration Releases Federal Fracking Regulations

On Wednesday, January 28, the Senate voted against Amendment 48 which would allow the federal Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) to regulate hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) on state and private lands.  The measure was presented by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) as a negotiated amendment to the Keystone XL Pipeline Act.  The amendment would have repealed sections of…

On January 20, 2015 a U.S. District Judge overturned New Mexico’s ban on hydrocarbon extraction, which included a prohibition on hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) in the state.  (SWEPI, LP v. Mora County et al., Case No. 1:14-cv-00035-JB-SCY, filed Jan. 19, 2015.) Mora County, a political subdivision of the State of New Mexico, enacted the ban through a local ordinance in April 2013.  It was the first such prohibition in the country.

Federal District Court Judge James O. Browning based his decision on federal preemption:  “Historically, a county cannot enact or supersede federal law. The Ordinance thus goes beyond Mora County’s historical lawmaking just to deprive corporations of their rights.”  (Id. at p. 157.)  The Mora County ban clashed with both state and federal law regulating the drilling of oil and gas.  Under the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause, any local or state law that conflicts with federal law is invalid.Continue Reading Federal Judge Rules that State and Federal Law Preempts New Mexico’s Fracking Ban

On Wednesday, July 9, 2014, the State Water Resources Control Board (“Water Board”) announced that it will be holding a “Stakeholder Meeting to Develop Groundwater Monitoring Model Criteria for Oil & Gas Areas.”  The meeting is scheduled for Thursday, August 7, 2014 from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm in the Kern County Supervisors Chambers in Bakersfield.  The Water Board is required to develop model groundwater monitoring criteria by July 1, 2015 pursuant to Senate Bill 4 (“SB 4”).  (Wat. Code, § 10783, subd. (c).) 

Interim well stimulation regulations, issued by the Department of Conservation’s Division of Oil, Gas & Geothermal Resources (“DOGGR”) came into effect on January 1, 2014.  DOGGR is on schedule to publish permanent regulations on January 1, 2015.  Under the interim regulations, well operators must submit a groundwater monitoring plan, or request an exemption from the Water Board if the operator can show the absence of protected waters.  (Interim Regulations, § 1783.1, subd. (b)(4).)  If the exemption is granted, the Water Board issues a written concurrence.  (§ 1783.4, subd. (c).)Continue Reading Water Board Announces Meeting to Develop SB 4 Groundwater Monitoring Criteria

On December 11, 2013, Stoel Rives and BSK Associates will host a complimentary breakfast seminar in Bakersfield, CA to share observations and strategies for complying with SB 4. Breakfast will begin at 7:30 a.m., with the program beginning at 8:00 a.m.

The office of Jason Marshall, Deputy Director of the Department of Conservation, has confirmed…

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Here Stoel Rives shares insight and analysis about key mineral law developments. Drawing on a very active natural resources practice, we aim to keep readers informed about the legal aspects of news that impacts exploration and development of all things mineral.