West Virginia senators push for permitting reform
Friday, April 21, 2023
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and a host of industry allies are pushing for congressional action this spring and summer to reform the federal permitting process, according to Oil & Gas Journal.
Proponents of reform believe the current permitting process is a costly delay-producing challenge for oil and gas companies and other infrastructure developers.
Manchin told a forum at the US Chamber of Commerce that Senate committees would be holding hearings starting this month and running through May with the hope of seeing a bipartisan compromise permitting bill take shape before the congressional August recess.
Moore Capito stressed that the potential permitting reform bill would need to go through jurisdictional committees to build adequate support.
Both senators believe now is the time to push for reform before lawmakers turn their attention to the 2024 election season.
Learn more: Oil & Gas Journal > Lawmakers, industries push for permitting reform in months ahead
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Fracking is a slang term for hydraulic fracturing. Fracturing is a process by which highly pressurized fluid is pumped thousands of feet into the ground to fracture rock formations. The goal is to release the natural gas that’s locked inside the rock.
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What most concerns people about fracturing is ground water contamination. The worry is that fractures underground, caused by the process, will extending upwards and into aquifers, releasing gas and chemicals into the ground water supply. There’s been no confirmed reports of such a thing happening. Though surface spills and drill site blowouts can lead to localized environmental concerns.
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Flammable water is caused by the release of methane gas into a drinking water supply. Methane gas occurs naturally and can be released by any kind of drilling, including water wells. In Pennsylvania officials fined Chesapeake Energy $1 million for contaminating ground water with methane. It was determined that the company had not properly cemented it’s boreholes and gas migrated up the well, between rock and into aquifers.