STRONGER is a non-profit organization that uses industry personnel to review state oil and gas environmental regulations. The team was observed by representatives from environmental groups, state regulators, the oil and gas industry and the US Environmental Protection Agency, STRONGER said.
STRONGER's review team said the state DEP should encourage more extensive baseline groundwater quality testing by operators in areas where drilling is imminent. The state also should consider factors that can affect the test results, such as the absence of confining rock layers.
The review team said drillers should be required to identify to the DEP potential conduits for fluid migration, such as active and abandoned wells, in an area where fracking will be used.
The review team also said operators' prevention, preparedness and contingency plans filed with the DEP should identify the procedures that will be used to inform emergency medical personnel about the chemical composition of fracking fluids.
In addition to notifying the DEP at least 24 hours before drilling starts, operators also should give the state advance notice before a well is fracked, the review said. The DEP also "should have the opportunity to conduct inspections at critical stages, including during hydraulic fracturing and
flowback," it added.
The review team recommended the state require liners or secondary containment around tanks or other facilities storing "pollutional substances."
Also, rules requiring pit bottom "preparation and liner placement, should be considered." The review team recommended that secondary containment requirements should be established for storage tanks used in fracking.
China Chemical Weekly: http://news.chemnet.com/en/detail-1411716.html
