BLM extends public comment period on proposed Hydraulic Fracturing Rule
June 9, 2013
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced that it is extending the public comment period on its proposed revised rule to regulate hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas on public and Indian trust lands. Notice of the 60-day extension, which extends the comment period deadline to August 23, 2013, will be published in the Federal Registeron Monday, June 10.
The high level of interest in the rule, which is the first update of these Federal oil and gas regulations since the 1980s, prompted the extension.
The updated draft proposal maintains the three main components of the initial proposal: requiring operators to disclose the chemicals they use in fracturing activities on public lands; improving assurances of well-bore integrity to verify that fluids used during fracturing operations are not contaminating groundwater; and confirming that oil and gas operators have a water management plan in place for handling fluids that flow back to the surface.
Submit comments on the revised proposed rule before August 23 in one of the following ways:
Mail: U.S. Department of the Interior, Director (630), Bureau of Land Management, Mail Stop 2134 LM, 1849 C St. NW, Washington, DC, 20240, Attention: 1004-AE26.
Personal or messenger delivery: Bureau of Land Management, 20 M. St. SE, Room 2134 LM, Attention: Regulatory Affairs, Washington, DC 20003.
Online at the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments at this Website.
To read the proposed rule, click on this link: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2013-05-24/pdf/2013-12154.pdf
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