Oil & Gas Blog

On February 27, 2017, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced that it agreed to a $1.2 million civil penalty with an operator to settle violations related to a 2012 impoundment leak. According to the PADEP news release, in September 2012, testing of five private water… Read more

On February 23, 2017, the U.S. Geological Survey announced that it will release updated maps detailing the potential of natural and induced seismic events on March 1, 2017. The 2017 maps mark the second year that USGS has projected both natural and induced seismic risks. USGS previously stated… Read more

On February 22, 2017, Penn Live reported that Pennsylvania District Judge Jerry C. Lepley sent a summons to two oil and natural gas companies concerning an alleged leak of flowback water in Lycoming County. According to the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, the two companies allowed… Read more

On February 21, 2017, the journal Environmental Science & Technology published “Unconventional Oil and Gas Spills: Risks, Mitigation Priorities, and State Reporting Requirements,” an assessment of spill data from unconventional development operations in Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota, and… Read more

On February 16, 2017, the Texas Railroad Commission announced that the agency will be adding quarterly oil and gas enforcement data to its website. Beginning with the first quarter of 2017, the Commission will post summary data detailing the number of: (1) oil and gas facility inspections… Read more

On January 30, 2017, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana denied an oil and natural gas operator's motion to dismiss a Clean Water Act citizen suit that alleges that the operator dredged near the shore of Lake Grand Ecaille without a permit. The plaintiff, the Louisiana… Read more

On February 17, 2017, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection held a press conference to announce its finding that Utica shale hydraulic fracturing activities conducted on April 25, 2016 correlated to microseismic, or unfelt seismic events. According to PADEP, hydraulic… Read more

Today, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced that it will hold a public webinar tomorrow, February 17, 2017 to discuss its review of seismic events that occurred in Lawrence County on April 25, 2016. According to PADEP, a series of low-magnitude seismic events on April… Read more

On February 14, 2017, Colorado Attorney General Cynthia H. Coffman filed suit in Colorado state court to enjoin Boulder County’s five-year moratorium on new drilling permits. The Attorney General alleges in the petition that the County has extended or re-imposed the five-year moratorium a total of… Read more

On February 10, 2017, the Texas Railroad Commission released its permits and completions statistics for January 2017. The RRC issued a total of 956 original drilling permits during January 2017, nearly double the number of original drilling permits issued during the same period last year… Read more

On February 1, 2017, the Dallas Court of Appeals overturned a jury’s finding that an operator’s oil and natural gas activities created an intentional nuisance for a nearby landowner. The landowner brought suit against the operator for “environmental contamination and polluting events,” including… Read more

On February 7, 2017, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf released his proposed 2017-18 budget for the Commonwealth, which includes a proposed 6.5% severance tax on natural gas. Under Governor Wolf’s plan, operators would be allowed to credit the amount paid in unconventional gas well impact… Read more

On February 2 and 3, 2017, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved Energy Transfer Partners, LP’s $4.2 billion “Rover” pipeline project, Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC’s $3 billion “Atlantic Sunrise” pipeline expansion, and National Fuel Gas Company’s $455 million “… Read more

On February 4, 2017, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection opened a 45-day public comment period for two proposed general permits and revisions to an air quality permit exemption. The proposals are designed to reduce methane and other pollutants at well sites and… Read more

On January 30, 2017, President Donald Trump issued a “Presidential Executive Order on Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs.” The Executive Order requires that, unless prohibited by law, whenever an agency proposes or promulgates a new regulation through the Federal Register, the… Read more

On January 27, 2017, Federal Energy Regulatory Commissioner Norman C. Bay announced his resignation, effective February 3, 2017. Bay’s resignation will create a third vacancy on the five-commissioner panel, leaving FERC one commissioner short of a quorum. Routine FERC business delegated… Read more

In January 2017, the Texas Railroad Commission announced that oil and natural gas producers may now file well log data electronically.  The Commission estimates that the new electronic filing system will save operators $362,000 annually and make well log data more easily accessible… Read more

In December 2016, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court agreed to hear additional oral argument in Snyder Brothers, Inc. v. Pa. Public Utility Comm’n. The case concerns the proper interpretation of Pennsylvania’s Act 13 of 2012, which exempts from the Commonwealth’s impact fee those… Read more