fracking
Fracking and the Environment
A new RFF report sheds light on the critical issues.
There are a lot of unanswered questions about natural gas and fracking. A recent report by Resources for the Future sheds light on some of the answers. RFF is unusual among Washington think tanks — an honest broker that uses expertise to try to answer hard questions. The report reaches three important conclusions. The first …
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CONTINUE READINGIPCC Report Highlights Need for Rapid Shift to Renewable Energy; Delay Will be Costly
Meanwhile, EPA Considers Methane Regulations for Oil and Gas Production
According to the newest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) mitigation report, only a few decades remain to halt the worst effects of global climate change. To meet climate goals, globally we will need to reduce emissions to 40 to 70 percent below today’s levels, by mid-century. Delaying action will be enormously costly from an …
CONTINUE READINGAs Oil by Rail Gains Momentum, Is California On Track to Protect Human Health and the Environment?
A closer look at the data and key legal issues
California will soon see a surge in the number of trains carrying crude oil into the state, as oil production in North Dakota’s Bakken region and Canada continues to increase, sending more crude to California refineries. Last week, the California Senate Environmental Quality Committee and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing on the safety of …
CONTINUE READINGOffshore Fracking Battles Brewing in the Golden State
Increased attention to fracking off the California Coast; what our state agencies can do about it
As prior blog posts and reports have detailed, hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) has been occurring onshore in California for decades, yet without full disclosure to the public or state regulatory agencies. Recently, new reports of offshore fracking in both California and federal waters have surfaced, showing that fracking has also been underway off the coast for …
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CONTINUE READINGState Releases New Fracking Regulations Amid SB 4 Criticism, Controversy
DOGGR also wades into CEQA while environmental community questions wisdom and effects of new State law
California’s Division of Oil, Gas & Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) has released its proposed regulations governing hydraulic fracturing pursuant to Senate Bill 4, controversial legislation signed into law this September. DOGGR’s November 15 public notice begins its formal rulemaking process and marks the start of a 60-day public comment period for the new rules. DOGGR also …
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CONTINUE READINGCalifornia Enacts Nation’s First Comprehensive Fracking Law—And Everyone’s Unhappy
Controversial But Promising, SB 4 Constitutes Tangible Progress on the Fracking Front
Late last month the California Legislature passed, and Governor Jerry Brown signed into law, the nation’s first comprehensive system of regulating hydraulic fracturing, the oil and gas drilling technique more commonly known as “fracking.” It turns out that no one–the oil and gas industry, surface landowners or environmentalists–is particularly happy with the new law. And …
CONTINUE READINGEnvironmental Impacts of Fracking: Three Layers of the Onion
This summer, The Emmett Center at UCLA jointly sponsored with the Union of Concerned Scientists a two-day workshop on unconventional oil and gas production technologies, aka fracking: two days of expert working groups on science and risk assessment, law and regulation, and public information and engagement, followed by a public forum. The public forum was …
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CONTINUE READINGHydraulic Fracking in California: New Report Addresses Wastewater and Potential Water Impacts
Today, Berkeley Law released a new report on hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) in California, focusing on wastewater and potential water quality impacts. The report, Regulation of Hydraulic Fracturing in California: A Wastewater and Water Quality Perspective, is an independent analysis produced by Berkeley Law’s Center for Law, Energy & the Environment (CLEE) through its new initiative, the Wheeler …
CONTINUE READINGU.S. Bureau of Land Management Violated NEPA When Selling Oil and Gas Leases in California
On April 8, a federal magistrate judge issued the first major ruling in a California fracking lawsuit, finding that the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by failing to take the necessary “hard look” at the impact of hydraulic fracturing when it sold oil and gas leases in California. …
CONTINUE READINGCasting a Shadow on the Future of Shale Gas
Current projections for shale oil and gas are huge. But are they realistic? An article in the February 21 issue of Nature suggests that these projections may be too optimistic: Wells decline rapidly within a few years. Those in the top five US plays typically produced 80–95% less gas after three years. In my view, the …
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