Shale Law Weekly Review
Shale Law Weekly Review – August 5, 2019
Pipelines: Appeals Court Vacates Biological Opinion and Incidental Take Statement for Atlantic Coast Pipeline
On July 26, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated a decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) regarding endangered species potentially affected by the construction of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (Defenders of Wildlife v. U.S. Dep’t of the Interior, No. 18-2090). The Petitioners – Defenders of Wildlife, Sierra Club, and Virginia Wilderness Committee – filed suit after FWS issued a Biological Opinion and Incidental Take Statement for the pipeline. The Biological Opinion concluded that two species, the […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – July 29, 2019
Production and Operation: Pennsylvania Court Upholds Most, But Not All, Unconventional Well Regulations
On July 22, 2019, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court upheld most of Pennsylvania’s unconventional well regulations while also ruling that one regulation was void and unenforceable (Marcellus Shale Coal. v. Dep’t of Envtl. Prot. of Pennsylvania, No. 573 M.D. 2016, 86-88). The unconventional well regulations found in Title 25, Chapter 78a of the Pennsylvania Code were promulgated in October 2016. The Marcellus Shale Coalition (Coalition) then filed suit against Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection and Environmental Quality Board requesting that the regulations be found invalid. Ultimately, the […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – July 22, 2019
Post-Production Costs: Court Determines Oil and Gas Company Cannot Deduct Post-Production Costs from State Royalty Payments
On July 11, 2019, the Supreme Court of North Dakota ruled that Newfield Exploration Company (Newfield) could not deduct post-production costs incurred by the company from royalties paid to the state (Newfield Exploration Co. v. State of North Dakota, No. 20190088). Newfield filed the lawsuit to determine whether the royalty payments made to the State of North Dakota were correct after an audit of the company found the royalties were being underpaid according to the lease. Newfield was making royalty payments to the […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – July 15, 2019
Infrastructure: Environmental Group files Lawsuit Against Washington State for Issuing Permit for LNG Facility
On July 9, 2019, the Advocates for a Cleaner Tacoma (ACT) filed a Petition for Judicial Review of Agency Action against the Washington State Department of Ecology for issuing a permit for a liquified natural gas (LNG) facility (Advocates for a Cleaner Tacoma v. Washington State Dep’t of Ecology). According to the Petition, the Department issued Administrative Order 13764, granting water quality certification for Puget Sound Energy, Inc.’s proposed LNG facility. ACT contends that the Department violated the State Environmental Policies Act by issuing […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – July 8, 2019
Municipal Regulation: Boulder County Approves Temporary Moratorium on New Oil and Gas Development Applications
On June 28, 2019, the Board of County Commissioners (Board) approved Resolution 2019-59 (Resolution), issuing a temporary moratorium on new oil and gas development applications and seismic testing in Boulder County, Colorado, according to the county’s press release. The moratorium was issued in response to SB 19-181 titled, Protect Public Welfare Oil and Gas Operations, which was signed into law on April 16, 2019. The new state law gives local governments more authority to regulate oil and gas land use in order to minimize the […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – July 1, 2019
GHG Emissions: Council on Environmental Quality Issues Proposed Draft Guidance to Assist Federal Agencies when Considering Greenhouse Gas Emissions
On June 26, 2019, the U.S. Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued proposed draft guidance on how federal agencies should address greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The guidance titled, Draft National Environmental Policy Act Guidance on Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions, is expected to replace previous guidance that was withdrawn in 2017. The purpose of the guidance is to ensure that major federal actions are in compliance with NEPA, which requires considering environmental […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – June 24, 2019
Federal Lands: Department of Interior Issues Guidance on the Recalculation of Royalties Following Reinstatement of 2016 Rule
On June 13, 2019, U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) issued a letter explaining that all federal oil and gas lessees, along with federal and Indian coal lessees, must recalculate royalty payments from January 1, 2017, to the present. The letter follows a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, which vacated ONRR’s repeal of a 2016 rule titled, Consolidated Federal Oil & Gas and Federal & Indian Coal Valuation Reform (2016 rule). […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – June 17, 2019
Municipal Regulation: PA Appeals Court Rules that Grandmother Lacks Standing to Challenge Natural Gas Well Location
On June 6, 2019, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld a trial court ruling that a grandmother concerned over her granddaughter’s health lacked standing to challenge the location of a natural gas well site (Worthington v. Mount Pleasant Township, No. 1149 C.D. 2018). The Plaintiff, Jane Worthington, was denied party status at a Mount Pleasant Township Board of Supervisors (Board) hearing regarding approval of a conditional use permit for the well site. Ms. Worthington requested party status to contest the location of […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – June 11, 2019
Public Lands: Audit Finds Pennsylvania Failed to Collect Royalties from Oil and Gas Companies Developing on State Game Lands
On May 23, 2019, The Pennsylvania Auditor General released a Performance Audit Report (audit) for the Pennsylvania Game Commission (Commission), finding the Commission failed to adequately track oil and gas royalties from producers operating on state game lands. The audit lists several issues it found in the Commission’s accounting practices regarding the collection and monitoring of royalties owed. These issues include relying on data submitted by oil and gas producers without confirming the data’s accuracy, failing to audit producers […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – June 4, 2019
State Regulation: Oregon Senate Passes Oil and Gas Moratorium Bill
On May 29, 2019, the Oregon Senate passed a bill which will ban oil and gas production and exploration within the state for the next five years. The bill, HB 2623, creates a five year moratorium on hydraulic fracturing but exempts natural gas storage wells, geothermal, and existing coal bed methane wells. The Senate version of the bill decreased the original length of the moratorium from the House version of the bill which would have prohibited oil and gas exploration for ten years. The Senate changes to the bill must […]
