Bill Text: PA HB24 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: In preliminary provisions, further providing for definitions; and, in general requirements, further providing for well reporting requirements.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 51-13)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-10-06 - Referred to ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY [HB24 Detail]

Download: Pennsylvania-2011-HB24-Introduced.html

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PRINTER'S NO. 2519
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 24 Session of2011
INTRODUCED BY EVERETT, AUMENT, BAKER, BOBACK, R. BROWN, CARROLL, CREIGHTON, CUTLER, DALEY, DAY, DENLINGER, DePASQUALE, DiGIROLAMO, EMRICK, EVANKOVICH, FLECK, GABLER, GIBBONS, GINGRICH, GROVE, HARPER, HARRIS, HENNESSEY, HESS, KAUFFMAN, F. KELLER, M. K. KELLER, KNOWLES, KRIEGER, LAWRENCE, MAJOR, MILLARD, MILLER, MILNE, MIRABITO, MULLERY, MUNDY, MURT, MUSTIO, O'NEILL, PAYTON, PEIFER, PICKETT, QUINN, READSHAW, ROCK, ROSS, SACCONE, SCAVELLO, CULVER, SCHRODER, SIMMONS, K. SMITH, STABACK, STEPHENS, STURLA, SWANGER, TOEPEL, TRUITT, VEREB, VITALI AND WATSON, OCTOBER 6, 2011
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL RESOURCES AND ENERGY, OCTOBER 6, 2011
AN ACT
Amending the act of December 19, 1984 (P.L.1140, No.223),
entitled "An act relating to the development of oil and gas
and coal; imposing duties and powers on the Department of
Environmental Resources; imposing notification requirements
to protect landowners; and providing for definitions, for
various requirements to regulate the drilling and operation
of oil and gas wells, for gas storage reservoirs, for various
reporting requirements, including certain requirements
concerning the operation of coal mines, for well permits, for
well registration, for distance requirements, for well casing
requirements, for safety device requirements, for storage
reservoir obligations, for well bonding requirements, for a
Well Plugging Restricted Revenue Account to enforce oil and
gas well plugging requirements, for the creation of an Oil
and Gas Technical Advisory Board, for oil and gas well
inspections, for enforcement and for penalties," in
preliminary provisions, further providing for definitions;
and, in general requirements, further providing for well
reporting requirements.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Section 103 of the act of December 19, 1984
(P.L.1140, No.223), known as the Oil and Gas Act, is amended by
adding a definition to read:
Section 103. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
* * *
"Unconventional well." A bore hole drilled or being drilled
for the purpose of or to be used for producing oil or gas from a
geological formation existing below the base of the Elk
Sandstone or its geologic equivalent stratigraphic interval
where oil or gas generally cannot be produced at economic flow
rates or in economic volumes except by vertical or horizontal
well bores stimulated by hydraulic fracture treatments or by
using multilateral well bores or other techniques to expose more
of the formation of the well bore.
* * *
Section 2. Section 212 of the act is amended by adding a
subsection to read:
Section 212. Well reporting requirements.
* * *
(e) The department shall:
(1) Require an operator of a well on which a hydraulic
fracturing treatment is performed to:
(i) Complete the form posted on the publicly
accessible, hydraulic fracturing chemical registry
Internet website of the Ground Water Protection Council
and the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission with
regard to the well.
(ii) Include in the form completed under
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subparagraph (i):
(A) The total volume of water used in the
hydraulic fracturing treatment.
(B) Each chemical ingredient that is subject to
the requirements of 29 CFR 1910.1200(g)(2) (relating
to hazard communication) as provided by a service
company or chemical supplier or by the operator, if
the operator provides its own chemical ingredients.
(iii) Post the completed form described by
subparagraph (i) on the Internet website described by
subparagraph (i) or, if the Internet website is
discontinued or permanently inoperable, post the
completed form on another publicly accessible Internet
website specified by the department.
(iv) Submit the completed form described by
subparagraph (i) to the department with the well
completion report for the well.
(v) In addition to the completed form specified in
subparagraph (iv), provide to the department a list, to
be made available on a publicly accessible Internet
website, of all other chemical ingredients not listed on
the completed form that were intentionally included and
used for the purpose of creating a hydraulic fracturing
treatment for the well. The department shall ensure that
an operator, service company or supplier is not
responsible for disclosing ingredients that:
(A) were not purposely added to the hydraulic
fracturing treatment;
(B) occur incidentally or are otherwise
unintentionally present in the treatment; or
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(C) in the case of the operator, are not
disclosed to the operator by a service company or
supplier. The department shall not require that these
ingredients be identified based on the additive in
which they are found or that the concentration of
such ingredients be provided.
(2) Require a service company that performs a hydraulic
fracturing treatment on a well or a supplier of an additive
used in a hydraulic fracturing treatment on a well to provide
the operator of the well with the information necessary for
the operator to comply with paragraph (1).
(3) Post the information provided by the well operator
on the department's Internet website.
Section 3. This act shall take effect in 120 days.
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