Energy in Depth

Wy. State Sen., Former House Speaker: State Regulators Best Equipped to Oversee Hydraulic Fracturing

As the groundswell of opposition to job-killing anti-hydraulic fracturing legislation in Congress builds both inside and outside Washington, state legislatures and county governments continue to speak out in a forceful, compelling way.

While a host of state governments have passed formal resolutions opposing the federal takeover of hydraulic fracturing regulation – a practice that has been applied for more than 60 years under stringent state regulation without a single incident of groundwater contamination – some individual legislators, who understand the catastrophic impact such legislation could have on jobs and energy production in their communities have been even more vocal.

State Senator Eli Bebout, a Wyoming Democrat-turned-Republican, former House speaker, and a man who knows a thing or two about producing energy, took to the pages of the Casper Star-Tribune this past week to make the case against a one-size-fits-all federal hydraulic fracturing regime.

Sen. Bebout’s column comes a few months after the Wyoming state legislature backed a joint-resolution requesting that Congress not pass legislation that would bring hydraulic fracturing under the federal government’s regulatory authority.

Key excerpts from Sen. Bebout’s column, entitled “Don’t federally regulate hydraulic fracturing“:

• In nearly 60 years of commercial use, not a single documented case of drinking water contamination has been credibly tied to hydraulic fracturing — even though more than a million wells have been “fracked” in that time.

• Aren’t our State Oil and Gas Conservation Commissions doing a good enough job of that already? Not according to lawmakers from Denver and New York, who haven’t been shy about questioning the commitment and even the competency of oil and gas regulators who happen to reside outside the D.C. offices of EPA.

• Thankfully, here in Wyoming, support for the tools we need to deliver affordable energy and good-paying jobs to the state generally isn’t a partisan affair. That’s why the Legislature came together recently in Cheyenne to pass a straightforward joint resolution — one that reiterates our support for the technology, and lays out the history of how Congress came to reject the notion of federal regulation over fracturing in the first place.

• The states are doing a good job and are willing to improve if necessary. Handing over this regulation to the EPA is unjustified and unnecessary and will cost America revenue, royalties, and jobs — to say nothing about exacerbating our dangerous and growing dependence on energy from unstable parts of the planet.

Sen. Bebout closes with this:

• As the current administration in Washington takes a close look at how it can help create new revenues and put American workers back on the job, it’d do well to take a look at the important role that hydraulic fracturing plays in delivering America’s clean-energy future. It would do even better to make sure it remains intact.

Fracking Continues to be Done Safely Under Heavy Regulations, Creating Jobs, More American Energy

Efforts are underway in Congress to halt hydraulic fracturing, a critical technique used to produce clean-burning American-made natural gas. Natural gas production opponents continue to attack the means of producing the resource – not the resource directly. The latest attempt, orchestrated by Rep. Diana DeGette and Sen. Bob Casey, both of whom represent natural gas producing states (although no fracking activities take place in Rep. DeGette’s district, interestingly), has brought a hailstorm of misinformation and half-truths about this safe natural gas production technique.

Thankfully these mistruths are not going unanswered. Robert Harms, president of the Northern Alliance of Independent Producers, set the record straight in a Bismarck Tribune and Minot Daily News letter-to-the-editor:

• “In truth, the 2005 energy bill – which was supported by then-Sen. Barack Obama – simply clarified that Congress’ intent was never to regulate hydraulic fracturing under the Safe Water Drinking Act of 1974. History bears this out, as SDWA has been amended three times since 1974 without even the suggestion that fracturing be added to its portfolio. How can you earn an exemption from something that never covered you in the first place? Our government has a legitimate role to play in making sure hydraulic fracturing remains safe. Thankfully, it’s a role they’re already playing – and have been for 60 years.”

Members of Congress that fully understand the environmentally-sound nature of hydraulic fracturing are speaking out, too. Congressman John Fleming of northwest Louisiana recently visited a Haynesville Shale site. KSLA-TV reported this:

• “All [the DeGette-Casey anti-fracking bill] would do is add more cost not really to the company, to the consumer,” said Fleming. … In the 20 years that Chesapeake has been in business they’ve put literally miles of feet of drill pipe into the ground, the company argues that it hasn’t had one incident of contaminated water through this process, and what’s more, officials say state regulations keep the company in check. … “There are 12 people just in North Louisiana alone who inspect and make sure all those procedures are properly followed,” said Fleming.”

Energy-producing counties continue to go on the record in support of this critical, job-creating technique. The Fort Morgan Times reports:

• “All of Morgan County’s commissioners agreed that a new bill proposing to regulate hydraulic fracturing in oil production is a bad idea. They approved a resolution urging federal legislators to maintain an exemption “fracking” has had under the Safe Drinking Water Act. … County Commissioner Tony Carlson said that…he favors a resolution against the federal regulations because they would affect neighboring counties. The regulations would affect Morgan County businesses which supply equipment and services to oil fields, said County Commissioner Brian McCracken. “We need to do whatever we can to help,” he said.”

Advocates in Congress and in county courthouses in energy-producing states understand the economic realities that clean-burning natural gas development produce. These economic benefits are very real, and are being seen throughout the country.

The economic and environmental benefits in Colorado were highlighted in this Denver Post column:

•  ”Advanced, proven technologies such as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing provided the impetus to make these new “shale plays” viable. … North American natural-gas supplies are abundant, affordable and clean. They can play an integral role in reducing greenhouse-gas emissions and lessen our dependence on hostile foreign-oil sources. Colorado can strengthen its economy and job base by using more of its natural gas intra-state, with supplies that are currently exported to other states.”

 And the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported on the massive amount of economic growth directly related to natural gas production in the Marcellus Shale region:

• “New drilling technologies make the Marcellus Shale formation – 6,000 feet or more underground – reachable, and rising demand in recent years makes going after it worthwhile. … Drillers from Texas, Louisiana and other states have been working here temporarily, but the companies are hiring and training local workers and could create about 8,000 jobs this year. Texas-based gas producer Range Resources LLC opened an office in Cecil, Washington County, with one employee in January 2007 and now has 130. … Another producer, Atlas Energy Resources LLC, has more than doubled its local work force to around 200 in Smithfield, Fayette County, plus 75 at its headquarters in Moon. … Texas-based Red Oak Water Transfer has 42 workers here so far, is moving into a new building in Hickory, Washington County and could hire 50 to 100 more employees in the next couple years, said Keith Ryals, operations manager.”

U.S. Congressman: “[Anti-fracing] legislation would have a far-reaching negative impact on energy and energy producers and consumers”

Last night, Congressman John Fleming, a freshman from northwestern Louisiana – where massive amounts of economic growth, jobs and government revenues have been created as a direct result of clean-burning natural gas production in the Haynesville Shale region – took to the House floor to tout the real-life impact that American energy production creates and to dispel untruths about the environmentally-safe energy production technique known as hydraulic fracturing.

And as Mr. Fleming’s time to speak expired, he was preparing to show the American people an Energy In Depth diagram displaying how hydraulic fracturing safely produces clean-burning natural gas. Seriously, Mr. Speaker: You couldn’t have given him an extra 10 seconds to do that?

Key Excerpts:

“[Haynesville Shale natural gas production has] pumped $4.5 billion into the economy in FY 2008. It’s created nearly $3.9 billion in household earnings in the same year. The greatest impact on indirect and household earnings was experienced by workers in the mining sector with new household earnings of $191.3 million in 2008. It’s created over $30 million in new earnings in seven separate sectors.”

“[Haynesville Shale natural gas production has] created directly and indirectly over 32,000 jobs.”

“Conservative estimates report that state and local tax revenues increased by at least $153.3 million in 2008.”

“I wanted to talk a moment about how we get the natural gas out of that shale that we are talking about, that’s two miles deep in the earth. The method is called hydraulic fracturing, or hydrofracing is a more common term. This method has been used for over 60 years and responsible for 30 percent of America’s recoverable oil and gas. Of wells currently operating today, wells currently operating today, over 90 percent have been fractured at least once.

“Environmentalists and their allies in Congress are escalating their assault on affordable and reliable energy with legislation that would place regulation of hydraulic fracturing under the Safe Drinking Water Act, SWDA. A law that was never intended for this purpose.”

“This legislation would have a far-reaching negative impact on energy and energy producers and consumers alike. For years this process has been safely and effectively regulated by individual states. And of the more than one million wells fractured, not a single case, not a single case of drinking water contamination has ever been recorded.”

“In my state of Louisiana, three different agencies have oversight related to this process. So you see, it’s not an unregulated process.”

NOTE: Click HERE to watch this floor speech.

La. Paper Lays Out Chapter-And-Verse the Positive Economic Effects of American Energy Production

Still plenty of buzz around the Potential Gas Committee report this week – a biennial review of available U.S. natural gas reserves that found we may be sitting on a resource base 58% higher than previously thought. To what do we owe this extraordinary circumstance? The safe and responsible utilization of hydraulic fracturing, which, paired up with horizontal drilling, has allowed us to capture and deliver energy resources that were previously in rock too deep, too hard and too expensive to access. Hailed by Energy In Depth in a press release, the study further demonstrates that serious resources are available right here at home to help drive down energy costs and make America less dependent on Middle Eastern nations to fuel our economy.

It’s very simple. More American energy means more American jobs. Look no further than Shreveport, Louisiana for proof of that. As the Potential Gas Committee found, most of the newly discovered energy reserves are locked thousands of feet below the surface in thick, deep shale-rock formations. Without hydraulic fracturing, these resources could not be produced, and the associated jobs and massive government revenues, would not be generated.

Today’s Shreveport Times is a case-study of how responsible energy development is being used in communities across the United States as a key driver of local economic growth. The Haynesville Shale formation has been an economic game-changer in northwestern Louisiana. In fact, BusinessWeek ranked the energy-producing city “as 15th among its top 20 places in the U.S. where companies are hiring and the quality of life is high.”

The paper writes:

“Interest in the Haynesville Shale…continues to fuel employment in the region. The natural gas formation…has pumped millions of dollars into some property owners’ pockets — including local governments — since the discovery was announced in April 2008. A recently completed economic impact study estimates Haynesville Shale activity created about 32,742 jobs, about $2.4 billion in business sales statewide and nearly $3.9 billion in household earnings, including almost $3.2 billion in lease and royalty payments to private landowners, in 2008.”

Unfortunately, some in Washington are focused on hampering this positive growth and production of clean-burning natural gas through burdensome red-tape and duplicative mandates.

In today’s New York Times, the Energy In Depth coalition summarizes what fracturing techology means to America’s energy security — and how without this safe practice, the economic expansion seen in Shreveport, would not be possible:

“Hydraulic fracturing is the Rosetta Stone of natural gas development. With it, otherwordly amounts of shale and tight-pocket gas can be found, produced and delivered to Americans who need it. Without it, those resources remain trapped underground.”

Financial community in a stir over DeGette/Casey anti-frac bill

Bloomberg Host: But there is some legislation, right? There’s legislation that’s pending in the Congress … that’s linked to natural gas, because of this new technology that so many of the natural gas companies have been using. Right? Fracturing? In order to get the natural gas out? What have you been seeing in this vein?

Jason Gammel, Macquarie Securities: Well you’re exactly right. The issue is to bring the regulation of fracing up to the national level versus the state level where it’s always been. It really is a big deal because almost every well that’s been drilled to produce natural gas right now is fractured. There’s been over 1 million wells that have been fractured and there’s never been a single incident of pollution of the water table as a result of that. But it is an issue that has been raised that potentially goes to EPA.  It probably means that you are really going to delay the drilling of wells and probably push prices up.”

Click HERE to play.

Co. Govt. Sends Strong Message to Home-State US Reps; State, Local Govts. Can Regulate HF More Effectively Than Washington Bureaucrats

As editorials from across the nation continue to oppose duplicative and unnecessary federal regulations of the critical well stimulation technology known as hydraulic fracturing, an uprising in energy-producing communities and states continues to grow. Western Colorado’s energy-rich Mesa County is just the most recent example of this growing wave of opposition to overreaching federal efforts.

As reported by the Grand Junction Sentinel, the DeGette-Casey anti-fracking bill “drew the ire of the Mesa County Commission on Monday. The commission unanimously passed a two-page resolution in opposition to further regulation. The resolution also claims if Congress passes the bill, it will drive up energy costs and add to Washington bureaucracy.”

The commissioners noted that the bill’s chief authors in the U.S. House, Reps. Diana DeGette and Jared Polis, both Colorado Democrats, represent districts “that have limited or no energy production.”

With facts not on their side, fracking opponents continue to deploy scare tactics and hyperbole. But Mesa Co. Commissioner Craig Meis, who authored the county’s resolution, affirmed this:

“I guarantee you I can go into anybody’s household and find more dry chemicals than on any well pad. 99.5 percent of [frac fluid] is basically water and sand.”

The paper reported that Commissioner Meis “then handed out a list of common frac-fluid ingredients that showed many of the same ingredients can be found in dental cleaners, hair-care products, makeup and pool cleaners,” and that “no one spoke against the county resolution or in favor of the federal legislation.”

Rep. Cynthia Lumis (R-WY), a member of the Natural Resources Committee, may have said it best, in describing the efforts by some in Washington to effectively halt environmentally-safe production of clean-burning natural gas.

The Sublette Examiner quoted the freshman congresswoman, saying:

“This legislation is a classic example of Washington politicians searching for a problem to address their solution. It is time we put science above emotion on this issue.”

The Oklahoman Joins Chorus of Papers in Opposing the DeGette-Casey Anti-Fracking Bill

States largest paper calls efforts an “indefensible…power grab”

The Oklahoman, the state’s largest newspaper, took direct aim at Rep. Dianna DeGette’s anti-hydraulic fracturing legislation in an editorial today.

Titled “Power play: Fracturing plan wrong, indefensible,” the paper calls the renewed efforts by DeGette and other lawmakers to erect new and potentially insurmountable obstacles to the responsible development of clean-burning American natural gas “a solution in search of a problem.”

Like a host of other papers, The Oklahoman rightly points out that the true objective of the DeGette-Casey bill attacking hydraulic fracturing – contrary to how it’s been characterized by its authors – is to initiate an unprecedented EPA power grab over local oil and gas activities currently regulated (quite well) in the states. The paper writes: “The latest power grab is an attempt to switch regulation of hydraulic fracturing from the states to the Environmental Protection Agency.”

But thankfully, there are federal lawmakers who understand the facts and appreciate the critical role that hydraulic fracturing plays in delivering America’s energy future. The Oklahoman cites Rep. Dan Boren (D-OK), a member of the House Natural Resources Committee, who has said DeGette’s bill would be “disastrous for the industry.”

The paper closes with this:

“Fracturing has been around for 50 years. Boren said the evidence from using the technique thousands of times for half a century doesn’t indicate a problem with drinking water contamination. Legislation has been introduced in Congress to require companies to disclose the chemicals used in the process and allow the EPA to ensure compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. This is a solution in search of a problem.”

As gas prices continue to rise, up for the 48^th consecutive day, it’s difficult to understand why some in Congress are working to inhibit, impede and in some cases prohibit responsible, homegrown energy production – even as it continues to be among the most direct and effective ways to reduce our dependence on foreign nations, drive down costs for consumers and create millions of new jobs in the process.

Okla. Paper: Hydraulic fracturing a necessity

As opponents of responsible natural gas development move into a new phase of attack against the essential tool (hydraulic fracturing) that makes such development possible, Americans outside our nation’s capital are taking notice. Slowly but surely, they’re starting to arrive at the fact that, without this critical, 60-year-old technology, abundant reserves of clean-burning, American-made resources would immediately become inaccessible, resulting in massive job loss, higher energy costs, and greater dependence on foreign nations for the lifeblood of our economy.

Oklahomans have been producing natural gas safely and efficiently for decades. But Rep. DeGette’s legislation now threatens our energy security, and threatens the livelihoods of working-class families across the country, especially in Tulsa’s energy-rich region.

Today’s Bixby Bulletin highlights these very real economic threats:

“The proposed legislation would make drilling new oil and natural gas wells more difficult and more costly, limiting the number of wells drilled in Oklahoma and the amount of oil and natural gas the state produces. … Regulations to protect groundwater during oil and natural gas production are in place in Oklahoma through the Oklahoma Corporation Commission. Hydraulic fracturing has been in use for more than 50 years and a 2004 study conducted by EPA found that the practice posed “no threat” to underground drinking water supplies.”

The paper also quotes Mike McDonald, chairman of the Oklahoma Independent Petroleum Association (OIPA):“Hydraulic fracturing is a necessary part of Oklahoma’s crude oil and natural gas industry, and federal attempts to add new restrictions to the technological process will have devastating effects on the state’s economy.”

Energy-producing communities are not the only ones taking notice. Law360 reports that:

“Chris Tucker, a spokesman for the industry group Energy In Depth, said on Wednesday the legislation appears to be a bid to subject hydraulic fracturing to federal regulation – not just disclosure.”

The article also added that: “Industry officials have said that there have been no instances of injury or harm resulting from hydraulic fracturing.”

Opponents of hydraulic fracturing opponents continue to find themselves on the other side of the facts. Whether that eventually slows any of them down – that’s anyone’s guess.

Bill Aimed at Handcuffing Environmentally Safe, Well-Regulated Hydraulic Fracturing Nears House Introduction

Just days after last week’s congressional hearing on America’s extraordinary shale gas potential (and how hydraulic fracturing remains a critical tool for delivering it to the American people), Democratic Rep. Diana DeGette of Colorado intends to introduce legislation tomorrow that will radically alter the way energy is produced in America.

Consistent with her legislation in the 110^th Congress, DeGette remains squarely focused on stripping states – who have a 60-year record of ensuring hydraulic fracturing is done safely and effectively – of their regulatory authority and enacting a one-size-fits-all federal mandate that could effectively halt this critical energy-producing practice at a time when our economy, working families, and state and local governments desperately need the boost.

Many are taking notice to this legislation, especially in areas where jobs and tax revenues would be slashed if it were enacted into law.

Today’s Grand Junction (CO) Sentinel editorialized about Rep. DeGette’s bill, writing: “Despite the EPA reports from the Clinton and Bush administration, and even though there have been no documented cases of fracking contaminating drinking water, a DeGette spokeswoman said legislation is needed because there is anecdotal evidence of people becoming sick as a result of fracking. And that’s enough to justify federal regulations? This from a Democratic congresswoman who attacked President George W. Bush for ignoring science.”

The congresswoman’s home-state paper added this: “With little evidence to support the claims that fracking harms drinking water, there is no need for the federal regulation that DeGette is pushing.”

This paper, small, independent energy producers and every American family struggling in this economy understands that we must work to produce more energy here at home, not less of it.

Energy In Depth: Today’s News

Federal fracking legislation unnecessary. Grand Junction Sentinel, Editorial. “So let’s see. The Environmental Protection Agency under both a Democratic and a Republican president found no threat to domestic drinking water from the gas industry practice of hydraulic fracturing. Additionally, states already have the authority to regulate activities such as fracking, and the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission just adopted tough new drilling regulations that require companies to maintain an inventory of chemicals they use in fracking that can be made available to the state if there is suspected contamination. Despite this, however, Colorado’s 1st District congresswoman, Diana DeGette, plans to reintroduce legislation to establish federal regulation of fracking. … We’re glad to see that 3rd District Congressman John Salazar, whose district actually contains oil and gas drilling, is wavering on whether to support the bill. We hope he reaches the same conclusion that we have: With the new state regulations in place and just beginning to work, and with little evidence to support the claims that fracking harms drinking water, there is no need for the federal regulation that DeGette is pushing.”

States or Feds: Who gets to regulate hydraulic fracturing?. Fort Worth Business Press. “A controversial process used in natural gas drilling, and crucial to the Barnett Shale’s development, is at the center of a tug-of-war dispute between the energy industry and some legislators over whether hydraulic fracturing should be regulated by the state or the federal government. … ‘We have a 60-year track record on our side,’ said Chris Tucker, spokesman for Energy in Depth, a Washington, D.C.-based industry lobbying group comprised of dozens of organizations, including the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers, the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association and the Independent Petroleum Association of America.”

Louisiana Oil and Gas Association president, Don Briggs: Don’t regulate hydraulic fracturing process. The (La.) Daily Advertiser. “Hydraulic fracturing is a more than 50-year-old proven technology used to produce oil and natural gas. It involves pumping a water-sand mixture into rock formations where the oil or gas is trapped. … With a Democratic majority Congress, and a biased anti-oil and gas administration, environmentalists are seizing the opportunity to pass hydraulic fracturing legislation that would repeal that exemption. The Environmental Protection Agency and state regulators have studied the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on underground drinking water sources and have found no confirmed evidence of any contamination of drinking water wells. … The bottom line: Every study conducted to examine the impacts of hydraulic fracturing operations, and there have been many, have confirmed that hydraulic fracturing does not pose a threat to drinking water supplies.”

Fed explores the big fracking deal. Marketplace. “The oil drilling technique known as Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” is under federal scrutiny this week. The oil industry says reversing the process could add big fees and hinder exploration. Sam Eaton reports.”

Proposed bill could affect drilling in US. Times Herald-Record (NY). “As state officials prepare to tighten regulations on oil and natural-gas drillers, two federal lawmakers have announced they’ll introduce legislation that would make drillers take the same steps to protect drinking water as companies in other industries. … The future of the legislation, and new regulations that could be announced by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, have special resonance in Sullivan County, home to part of the Marcellus shale formation, thought to hold an abundance of natural gas.”