Hydraulic Fracturing and Safe Drinking Water Act Issues

Hydraulic fracturing is a technique developed initially to stimulate oil production from wells in declining oil reservoirs. With technological.
Table of contents


  • Quiz Me On The Torah - Leviticus.
  • Crochet Pattern - CP107 - Pebble Baby Dress - 0-3, 3-6, 6-9, 9-12,12-18mths - USA terminology?
  • Auch Chemiker haben Hunger vom Labor in die Küche (German Edition)!
  • Pump For Joy: Learn What its Like to Live With an Insulin Pump and Glucose Monitor!
  • Voice of the Heart.
  • Curse of the Evil Fairies Fort.

EPA expects to issue a final report in This report reviews past and proposed treatment of hydraulic fracturing under the SDWA, which authorizes regulation of the underground injection of fluids to protect groundwater sources of drinking water. It reviews current SDWA provisions for regulating underground injection activities and discusses some possible implications of the enactment of legislation authorizing EPA to regulate hydraulic fracturing beyond diesel under this statute.

The report also reviews legislative proposals concerning the regulation of hydraulic fracturing under the SDWA.

Hydraulic Fracturing and Safe Drinking Water Act Issues

Cutting to the chase Concluding Observations Hydraulic fracturing bills introduced in the th Congress and previously have generated considerable debate. Many state agencies have argued against regulation of hydraulic fracturing under the SDWA groundwater protection provisions and note a long history of the successful use of this practice in developing oil and gas resources and of state regulation of the industry.


  • Access Check;
  • Related Video Shorts (0).
  • Beautiful Music for Two String Instruments.
  • JSTOR: Access Check.
  • WaterWired Google Search;
  • CRS Report: 'Hydraulic Fracturing and Safe Drinking Water Act Regulatory Issues' - WaterWired.
  • 101 Little Known Facts with Dale Robertson (Little Known Facts Radio Show)?

At the same time, drilling and fracturing methods and technologies have changed significantly over time as they have been applied to more challenging formations, greatly increasing the amount of water, fracturing fluids, and well pressures involved in many oil and gas production operations. In recent years, numerous major oil and gas producing states have revised their regulations in response to changes in the industry, while other states are currently developing or considering new laws and regulations.

A few states have imposed moratoria on hydraulic fracturing while evaluating potential impacts and developing regulations, and on June 29, , New York State officially banned high-volume hydraulic fracturing. Proponents of federal regulation assert the need for a consistent, minimum level of regulation and water quality protection nationwide.

Central issues in the debate concern the need for, and potential benefits of, regulation of hydraulic fracturing under the SDWA. Pollution prevention generally—and groundwater protection in particular—is much less costly than cleanup, and where groundwater supplies are not readily replaceable, protection becomes a high priority.

If Congress directed EPA to regulate fracturing broadly under the SDWA, the environmental benefits could be significant if the risks of contamination were significant and states were not addressing those risks effectively. Such issues are not subject to SDWA authority and would not be addressed through regulation under this act.

Issues related to well construction, operation, monitoring, and closure could be addressed through the UIC program. Thus far, the data suggest that hydraulic fracturing—particularly in deep zones—presents a low risk of contamination to underground sources of drinking water, and most reports of contamination have been associated with surface activities or well construction and operation problems, not hydraulic fracturing per se. However, while regulators and industry practitioners define hydraulic fracturing as a specific well stimulation operation, the term is frequently used to refer broadly to the full range of activities associated with unconventional oil and gas production.

The answer to the question of whether hydraulic fracturing is contaminating drinking water supplies may depend on how broadly one defines hydraulic fracturing.

September 2018

While state oil and gas and groundwater protection agencies widely support keeping responsibility for regulating hydraulic fracturing with the states, public water suppliers have called for effective and adequately funded regulation of hydraulic fracturing at the federal, state, and local levels to reduce risks to water supplies as much as possible.

Whether state or federal, regulations require adequate resources to be administered effectively. The sheer number of wells that rely on fracturing suggests that state and federal regulators might need significant new staffing and other resources to implement and enforce any new EPA requirements on top of existing state requirements. Debate continues over the risks that hydraulic fracturing operations may pose to drinking water resources, and Congress directed EPA to study this matter.

On June 4, , EPA released its draft study of hydraulic fracturing and drinking water, and the final report is scheduled for The results of this and other studies are expected to provide a better assessment of potential risks and particular circumstances that may be associated with such risks and may help inform the need for, and focus of, additional regulation—whether at the state level through oil and gas laws and regulations or at the federal level through the SDWA UIC program. Posted on Wednesday, 02 September at Reblog 0 Digg This Save to del.

You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post. The letters and numbers you entered did not match the image. As a final step before posting your comment, enter the letters and numbers you see in the image below. This prevents automated programs from posting comments. Having trouble reading this image? Comments are moderated, and will not appear until the author has approved them. Name and email address are required.

Email address will not be displayed with the comment. Name is required to post a comment.

Hydraulic Fracturing and Safe Drinking Water Act Regulatory Issues [January 10, ]

Please enter a valid email address. WaterWired All things freshwater: Campana on Twitter Counter. Favorite Blogs Aguanomics The economics of water and some other stuff , courtesy of economist David Zetland. Alltop Water An aggregation of the top water blogs and their five most recent posts - all in one place! Authentically Wired Water and a lot more from Paul F. Blue Marble Earth A wandering, articulate Earth scientist just a few years from Vanderbilt University, Courtney van Stolk explores the 'whys' of this fantastic planet.

Michael Campana's personal blog, promulgating his Weltanschauung. Chance of Rain Journalist Emily Green's take on water issues. More than a dozen science and policy experts blogging away! Ecocentric A blog about food, water and energy. Janczyn opines on water, environment, technology, law and politics in the San Diego area. Hydro-Logic Matthew Garcia reports on hydrology and water resources in the news and science media. John Fleck Former science writer at the Albuquerque Journal. Great stuff on climate, water, and more. Focus is on California. On The Public Record A 'low level civil servant who reads a lot of government reports writes about California water and related topics.

Related Video Shorts 0 Upload your video. Customer reviews There are no customer reviews yet. Share your thoughts with other customers. Write a customer review. Amazon Giveaway allows you to run promotional giveaways in order to create buzz, reward your audience, and attract new followers and customers. Learn more about Amazon Giveaway. Set up a giveaway. There's a problem loading this menu right now. Get fast, free shipping with Amazon Prime.

Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations. View or edit your browsing history. Get to Know Us. English Choose a language for shopping. Amazon Music Stream millions of songs. Amazon Drive Cloud storage from Amazon.

Alexa Actionable Analytics for the Web. AmazonGlobal Ship Orders Internationally. Amazon Inspire Digital Educational Resources. Amazon Rapids Fun stories for kids on the go. Amazon Restaurants Food delivery from local restaurants. ComiXology Thousands of Digital Comics.

East Dane Designer Men's Fashion.