Made in America: For a Sustainable Energy Future

Access, common-sense regulation and a governmental approach that encourages energy investments: Each one is integral to an American-made, more secure energy future. Getting there will require continued improvements in efficiency and investments in renewable energy – two areas where the oil and natural gas industry has been a leader. This is the fourth recommendation in API’s recent report to the two political parties’ platform committees.

Today, the U.S. uses about half as much energy for every dollar of GDP as it did in 1980, according to the Energy Information Administration:

Efficiency helps energy companies manage costs, which in turn makes them more competitive and allows them to bring more affordable energy products to consumers.  Efficiency also helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Industry is committed to technologies that help the environment, investing $71 billion in developments that reduce greenhouse gas emissions between 2000 and 2010 – far more than the federal government ($43 billion) and nearly as much as the rest of domestic private industry combined ($74 billion).

This is what energy companies do. They produce the oil and natural gas that run our economy now and which will continue to fuel it in the future. They work on efficiencies that will make our energy go further. They look to the future for additional resource options that will be necessary to complete the energy picture.

The question is whether governmental policies will or hinder these efforts. Some think the path to our energy future should be selected by Washington, using the tax code to preordain winners and losers. They think an industry sector that contributed nearly a half-trillion dollars to the economy in 2010, which already sends $86 million a day to the U.S. Treasury, should be taxed more.

The wrongheadedness of this path was detailed in a Wood Mackenzie study last fall, which compared the likely results of pro-energy development policies with policies leading to higher energy taxes:

With a pro-development approach, America’s oil and natural gas companies can add jobs, increase energy supply and generate more tax revenue for government. Higher taxes on our industry will likely lose jobs, decrease tax revenue and result in less energy production.

The United States has tremendous energy resources to support and grow our economy and meet the challenges of the future. With the right vision and leadership we can stride into the future confidently – as befits an energy-rich nation.

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Launching: American Energy Works.org

The intersection of a recent anti-natural gas fundraiser at the trendy Brooklyn Winery – featuring fabulous culinary delights prepared by a group of talented chefs – and the natural gas that made the evening possible was, well, simply mouth-watering.

New York Daily News columnist Bill Hammond writes that the “Taste of the Marcellus” event last week was hosted by a group called Chefs for the Marcellus, to showcase the kinds of foods they say could be jeopardized if New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo OKs hydraulic fracturing in that state’s portion of the Marcellus Shale. Hammond:

"Guests were treated to eggplant-stuffed okra, smoked lamb belly with fermented tofu and whipped ricotta jewel on toast — along with wines from the Finger Lakes and beers from Cooperstown’s Ommegang brewery. Th... more »

Jill is a district manager for Total Safety, a company that provides service solutions for various aspects of the oil and natural gas industry, as well as power-generation and industrial markets. For her, the industry is about future job security: “It’s really an industry that’s not going away.”

Her video:

Visit American Energy Works.org for more videos and information about the people who’re at work for America’s energy future.

A new USA Today/Gallup poll finds two of the top three issues that Americans care about the most in this election year are … jobs and reducing the federal budget deficit. Check and check. America’s oil and natural gas industry can help with both. Respondents were asked to weigh the importance of a number of issues (see chart), and 92 percent said creating good jobs is “extremely/very important.” On cutting the federal deficit the figure was 86 percent. Jobs and revenue to the government – we can help.

With the right policies in place – increasing access to American natural resources, the right approach to energy regulation, encouraging energy investments and more – our industry could create 1.4 million jobs by 2030. Here’s how the Wood Mackenzie energy consulting firm charts the pot... more »

Energy-driven economic growth is more than theory in places like Mount Vernon, Ohio, and Chandlersville, about 60 miles to the southeast. Shale energy is building growth in both places – in different ways.

In Mount Vernon, Ariel Corporation is experiencing demand for the reciprocating gas compressors it manufactures, which are used to extract, process, transport, store and distribute natural gas from shale. In Chandlersville, Steve Addis and his wife own and operate Annie’s Restaurant, which is seeing an influx of workers who’re drilling new shale gas wells in the area. Both show how the oil and natural gas industry supports jobs beyond direct industry jobs.

More in this video:

Visit American Energy Works.org for more videos and information about the people who’re at work for Am... more »

ConocoPhillips’ Bob Morton is chief materials scientist at the company’s technology center in Bartlesville, Okla. The chemical that allowed development of low-sulfur gasoline and diesel – without sacrificing octane and without increasing the cost of the fuel – was developed there, he says.

Coming up with environmentally friendly consumer products is Morton’s mission:

“What I really love about my job is sometimes I’m given the opportunity to see something that nobody has seen before. And when those moments happen truly, those are the things that I think are the most wonderful parts of doing the job.”

Check out Bob’s story:

Visit American Energy Works.org for more videos and information about the people who’re at work for America’s energy future.

... more »

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Lights, Cameras…Fracking!

Great time Thursday night at the grand, lovely Warner Theater in Washington, D.C., for API’s “Big Screen Energy” event, featuring film trailers from pro-energy documentaries on hydraulic fracturing including “Truthland,” “Empire State Divide” and “Frack Nation.” After the trailers, representatives of the films talked about their projects and answered questions from the audience. Some important points that emerged:

#1: Shale Energy = Economic opportunity

For lots of people in the Marcellus Shale portions of Pennsylvania, energy from fracking is helping them alter the courses of their lives. And it could help even more if New York state approves hydraulic fracturing on some scale. “Empire State Divide’s” Karen Moreau said New York agriculture needs working capital to survive. Energy development from that state’s portion of the Marcellus could supply that, keep farms operating and allow them to be handed off to the next generation, said Moreau, who since making her film was named executive director of the New York State Petroleum Council.

#2: Countering Frack Fiction

“Truthland,” featuring Pennsylvania science teacher and mom Shelly Depue, spends much of its 34 minutes dispelling misinformation about hydraulic fracturing and natural gas development. The film is a step toward centering the national fracking debate on science and fact instead of fear and misrepresentation. “Frack Nation’s” Phelim McAleer said some opponents aren’t interested in responsible development; they want to block natural gas altogether.

#3: The Right to Prosper

Moreau said the divide in New York over fracking is actually a property rights test – whether individuals may develop resources on their land. She said some opponents of natural gas development in New York’s southern tier, the counties in the Marcellus along the Pennsylvania border, aren’t residents of those areas. Still, they are trying to control or block development. The contest is still playing out, as state officials weigh how much development, if any, to allow.

Again, the evening provided an interesting perspective on an important public policy issue. At the center of it is a truth, noted by McAleer: the ability of energy to lift lives, to lift standards of living. McAleer said the lack of affordable, reliable energy usually characterizes areas that are impoverished and unhealthy – places where people have little chance to lift themselves. Energy changes that, he said.

In energy from shale, the United States has an historic opportunity to be more prosperous – with abundant fuel for the lifestyles of its citizens and the power to revitalize critical industries like manufacturing and chemicals. The U.S. also can make its future more secure, less dependent on imports. Industry’s role is to develop these resources safely and responsibly. It is doing this while striving to continually improve technologies and performance.

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Innovation: Chevron’s ‘i-field’ Links Performance, Savings

USNews.com has a good read on Chevron’s digital investments, which the company says will save up to a billion dollars a year in operating costs in 2016. The linchpin is Chevron’s digital oil field, the “i-field,” which is short for “intelligent field.” USNews explains:

“Chevron's i-field harnesses advanced technology and communications to improve performance at 40 strategic assets throughout the world, including some of its biggest and most productive oil and gas fields. The company is rolling out six to eight mission-control centers focused on separate business areas, ranging from machinery to drilling to wells and reservoirs, that monitor those assets in real-time and rely on sophisticated computer algorithms for early detection of problems. From Chevron's perspective, the i-field is now essential to its global operations, which span six continents.”

Chevron isn’t the only company doing these things (USNews notes that Shell and ConocoPhillips have their own versions), but it is recognized as one of the oil and natural gas industry’s leaders. Basically, to overcome the global and labor-intensive characteristics of oil and gas development, Chevron has digitized a number of its operations. USNews:

“Chevron has deployed thousands of tiny sensors, only millimeters or centimeters in size, that monitor field operations and transmit data, both wired and wirelessly, back to central locations. The sensors instantaneously track pressure, temperature, and other readouts and aid with the mapping of underground fuel deposits, allowing the company to maximize production. Chevron also employs analytics to evaluate data streams in real-time from oil wells, drill rigs, ships, and elsewhere.”

The company has two mission-control facilities in Houston that oversee drilling and machinery support and two others in Lagos, Nigeria, and Covington, La., that monitor deepwater drilling. USNews:

“High above Houston in an office tower, a tech-savvy team at Chevron's machinery support hub monitors thousands of pieces of equipment, in real-time, across every continent except Antarctica. Using software to analyze data transmitted by sensors, it conducts ‘predictive intelligence’ to pinpoint when equipment, such as rotating devices called compressors, needs maintenance ‘so we can change out parts before they break down,’ [Chevron Energy Technology President Paul] Siegele says.”

USNews includes some examples where the technology came into play. The machinery support center sensed that a compressor in one of Chevron’s Asian business units was experiencing valve failure. On-site inspection confirmed the problem and the valve got fixed. Another time, equipment at Chevron’s Sanha oil and natural gas field off the coast of Angola was showing an irregularity, which the team in Houston detected. A repair was made, and the company saved millions of dollars in potential damage and lost production.

Again, Chevron figures it already is saving in the millions of dollars and says that will become billions when the “i-field” and a general operational overhaul are fully implemented in four years. Efficiencies and savings, of course, mean innovating companies, like Chevron, can invest more in energy exploration and development, which is a good thing.

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Well-Paying Jobs…Like Ours!

We like talking about our industry’s job-creating ability – how, with the right policies America’s oil and natural gas companies could create a million new jobs before the end of the decade.

Some industry opponents dismiss the assertion by deriding the number of wage positions supported by oil and gas activity. We don’t. Every job means a paycheck for an American who’s glad to have it, especially in this economy.

But guess what? Our industry supports well-paying jobs, too. Payscale.com’s list of high lifetime-earnings jobs is topped by two from oil and natural gas – petroleum engineer and landman/senior landman.

Payscale.com says the typical earnings total for a petroleum engineer over a 45-year career is nearly $6.3 million. The average starting pay is more than $84,000, and at 20+ years the typical salary is $151,000. No. 2 on the list, a landman will earn $5.38 million over a 45-year career, Payscale notes. Starting pay averages $53,600, growing to $138,000 at 20+ years. Payscale lead analyst Katie Bardaro:

“This list is dominated by left-brained jobs that require analytical thinking. We are a tech-heavy, analytics-heavy society, so jobs that focus on those skills pay well.”

Especially jobs in fields that have a future – like oil and natural gas. Our industry literally fuels America’s economy now and will do so in the future according to government estimates. It’s an industry that’s going to be around.

So what other positions made Payscale’s Top 10? Glad you asked:

Software/senior software engineer ($4.36 million over 45 years)Electrical/senior electrical engineer ($4.17 million)Mechanical/senior mechanical engineer ($3.9 million)Software/senior software developer ($3.83 million)Financial analyst/senior financial analyst ($3.44 million)Communications coordinator/manager ($3.32 million)Marketing coordinator/manager ($3.31 million)Certified public accountant ($3.2 million)

Guess what again? You can find virtually all of these positions in the oil and natural gas industry – from the people who’re pioneering “intelligent field” technologies to manage modern, global exploration and development to the folks who develop marketing campaigns – you know, like this one.

Granted, a number of these careers can be found on other paths. Yet the list illustrates the breadth of our industry, its need for workers in the future and the promising career-long opportunities that this industry provides.

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Fix the Renewable Fuels Standard

There was good discussion of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) during a Hill hearing this week. API supports the appropriate use of ethanol, biodiesel and other biofuels in transportation fuels, but, unfortunately, in some ways the standard is bearing out the law of unintended consequences.

API President and CEO Jack Gerard addressed the House energy and power subcommittee, noting that U.S. refiners have primary responsibility for meeting the RFS requirements, blending nearly 15 billion gallons of ethanol in gasoline. But the RFS’ requirements are producing some bad policy, Gerard said:

“EPA has allowed the RFS law’s volume requirements to drive decisions that are inappropriate and unwise.  The law has become increasingly unrealistic, unworkable, and a threat to consumers.  It needs an overhaul, especially with respect to the volume requirements.” 

Gerard detailed ill effects stemming from the RFS’s volume mandates:

E10 “Blend Wall” – 10 percent ethanol content in fuel is safe for U.S. vehicle engines, service station pumps and storage tanks. But under the law, the ethanol volume in the overall fuel supply is required to increase and could exceed 10 percent as early as 2013. That’s the so-called “blend wall.” At that point refiners will have only two options: produce E15 (15 percent ethanol) and flexfuel or E85 – a blend of between 51 percent and 83 percent ethanol by volume that can be used only in flexfuel vehicles, which make up about 5 percent of the U.S. vehicle fleet today. More on E15 below. The problem with E85 is that it has a lower fuel economy than gasoline, and less than 2 percent of retail stations offer it.

E15 – EPA has approved the use of E15 for part of the vehicle fleet to help accommodate increases in the RFS volume requirement. But a recent study showed that E15 could damage engines that weren’t designed to use it, as well as gasoline station pump equipment. The risk can be measured in the billions of dollars. The Auto Alliance weighed in on E15, here. U.S. Rep. James Sensenbrenner shared the concerns of auto makers in a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson last summer. Gerard:

“EPA should not have proceeded with E15, especially before a thorough evaluation was conducted to assess the full range of short- and long-term impacts of increasing the amount of ethanol in gasoline on the environment, on engine and vehicle performance, and on consumer safety.”

Cellulosic ethanol – A 2007 law requires increasing use of this advanced form of ethanol that theoretically can be made from a broader range of feedstocks. But it isn’t available, because no one is making it commercially. The Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Brian McGraw has more details, here. Even so, EPA continues to assert that aggressive mandates, not based on actual production, will somehow stimulate production. EPA could waive the provision but instead is insisting that refiners buy credits for a non-existent fuel, which will drive up costs and might harm consumers.

RINS – This stands for renewable identification numbers, which are used with renewable fuel credits that some refiners have purchased under a program created by EPA. Some refiners became fraud victims after buying invalid credits in good faith. EPA’s initial response was that the bad credits were the refiners’ problem, and that they’d have to buy more. This adds more costs to making gasoline. Industry currently is trying to work out the problem with EPA.

Again, industry supports renewable fuels. But the RFS as written threatens to become counterproductive. Gerard:

“The RFS law needs to be altered to fix what isn’t working and take into account the ability of the vehicle fleet and fueling infrastructure to safely use renewable blends. Mandates must have periodic technology/feasibility reviews to allow for appropriate adjustments. Biofuels are an important part of the nation’s energy mix.  But current law and how it is implemented have become increasingly problematic.  This could eventually hurt consumers and erode support for the RFS program.”  

The answer is commonsense problem-solving, including positive collaboration between government and industry. While the goals of the RFS are well-intentioned, the marketplace realities are concerning, with potentially negative effects on companies and consumers that should be fixed.

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Jobs? Revenue for Government? We Can Help

A new USA Today/Gallup poll finds two of the top three issues that Americans care about the most in this election year are … jobs and reducing the federal budget deficit. Check and check. America’s oil and natural gas industry can help with both. Respondents were asked to weigh the importance of a number of issues (see chart), and 92 percent said creating good jobs is “extremely/very important.” On cutting the federal deficit the figure was 86 percent. Jobs and revenue to the government – we can help.

With the right policies in place – increasing access to American natural resources, the right approach to energy regulation, encouraging energy investments and more – our industry could create 1.4 million jobs by 2030. Here’s how the Wood Mackenzie energy consulting firm charts the potential jobs growth:

Leadership is needed to make this happen. Industry is doing its part – investing in America – and it’s willing to do more.

As for tax revenue for government, to help with the deficit, Wood Mackenzie estimates a pro-energy development strategy could generate a total of more than $800 billion by 2030:

Again, in a struggling economy the oil and natural gas industry is adding jobs and supporting communities while generating revenues for government. Energy-driven economic growth that’s being seen in North Dakota, Texas, Pennsylvania and other states can be realized in other places with a true all-of-the-above (and below) energy strategy.

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Crude Production Rise: Credit Where Credit’s Due

Last week the Energy Information Administration (EIA) told us that U.S. crude oil production in the first quarter of the year topped 6 million barrels per day (bbl/d) for the first time in 14 years. EIA’s chart:

EIA’s analysis:

“Strong growth in U.S. crude oil production since the fourth quarter of 2011 is due mainly to higher output from North Dakota, Texas, and federal leases in the Gulf of Mexico. … After remaining steady between 5.5 million and 5.6 million bbl/d during each of the first three quarters of 2011, EIA estimates that U.S. average quarterly oil production grew to over 5.9 million bbl/d during the fourth quarter and then surpassed 6 million bbl/d during the first quarter of 2012.”

Certainly, great news like that will restart discussion of who deserves credit for such a production milestone – beyond, of course, the energy companies that are actually pulling the oil from the ground or the seafloor. Politico Pro [subscription required] reports White House spokesman Clark Stevens emailed in the administration’s claim for credit:

“Despite misleading rhetoric by some in Washington, President Obama has made expanding responsible oil and gas production here at home a clear priority and the facts speak for themselves. Since the president took office, domestic oil and gas production has increased each year, with oil production in the first quarter of 2012 higher than any time in 14 years and natural gas production at its highest level ever, and that is certainly thanks in part to steps taken by this administration.”

That’s one view. Others disagree. Politico quotes Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst at the Oil Price Information Service:

“In the end, the president and Congress can’t take credit for what price and technology have delivered. It would be akin to taking credit for the iPad. … Unless there is a price collapse, or a true scientific indictment of fracking, one can expect to see plentiful growth in light sweet crude coming from the Rockies, North Dakota, and even Ohio or West Virginia.”

And Richard Newell, the EIA’s head from 2009-2011:

“In a political year, different parties would like to take credit for positive news in the energy sector and I think here the credit largely goes to technology."

And also Amy Myers Jaffe, an energy fellow at Rice University, who notes that North Dakota and Texas shale production has occurred mainly on private land, while increases from the Gulf result from the actions of previous administrations:

“Production rises from Gulf of Mexico would have been in the hopper way before President Obama took office.”

Settling the argument isn’t as important as recognizing that with the right policies the oil and natural gas industry can further develop America’s energy wealth. With the right strategies and leadership, the United States could see 100 percent of its liquid fuel needs met from North American sources. And along with it: jobs and tax revenues for government.

Strategies, policies and action: It’s what separates election-year rhetoric from substantive progress toward a more secure energy future.

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Friends of Fracking and Natural Gas

Perhaps as important as the president of the United States acknowledging the importance of natural gas and hydraulic fracturing to America’s energy present (and future) is a sense that such support is pretty far and wide. Here’s a quick roundup of some notable friends of natural gas – affordable, abundant and creating jobs all across the country – with a nod to Energy In Depth’s Steve Everley for help in corralling the links.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio:

“Shale development means economic development, and that’s exciting news for Ohio. It means tens of thousands of good-paying jobs across our state, all while helping to lower power costs for Ohio consumers. … We know that Ohio is home to countless innovative companies and a world-class workforce—now we need to ensure that energy companies arriving in the state are utilizing all that Ohio has to offer.”

Deputy Energy Secretary Daniel Poneman:

“The natural gas boom in the United States offers a tremendous opportunity to strengthen American energy security by drastically reducing our dependence on imported oil, while at the same time creating new U.S. jobs and industries. This is precisely why President Barack Obama is committed to safely and responsibly harnessing American oil and gas resources, and to developing the technologies that will unlock new domestic energy sources.”

U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark.:

“I’m a firm believer in natural gas. It already supplies almost one-fourth of all energy in the U.S. and we’re discovering more natural gas reserves every day thanks to newer, safer drilling techniques and technologies. Better yet, more than 98 percent of natural gas comes from right here in North America. … With the Fayetteville Shale in the northern part of (Arkansas) and the Haynesville Shale in the southern part, we have an abundant supply of clean, affordable energy to offer the world.”

Natural gas and fracking have support from strong environmentalists including …

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.:

“This is what I tell environmental folks: Natural gas is really important to a lot of renewables, solar and wind, ensuring that option is out there. … Natural gas is the cleanest of the fossil fuels, so you start with that as your basic proposition.”

U.S. Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass.:

“I think environmentalists should want natural gas on the table as an option. When coal is also going to be considered for new electrical generation or an extension of the life of an existing coal-fired power plant, I think it would be wise for us to not take natural gas off the table.”

Gov. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo.:

“Like any industrial process, fracking has some risks but, really, if done properly, certainly out in the West, there is literally no risk — certainly much less than many industrial processes. … I love open space and wilderness, but we all drive cars, right? And we all need energy. We recognize that, along with education, energy is the other necessary component to lifting people out of poverty.”

That last point is so important. Energy development is the difference between modern and primitive civilization – facilitating greater freedom, mobility and opportunity for better, healthier lives.

Candidly, the choice offered by some opponents of natural gas and hydraulic fracturing isn’t between more responsible development and less; it’s between responsible development and NO development. It’s an extreme choice. As energy blogger Steve Maley posted a few weeks ago, “If you’re not a fan of natural gas you’re a fan of mud huts.”

The right choice is to safely and responsibly develop a resource that can play a major role in securing America’s energy future.

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Shale Gas and a Refining Revival

NPR/State Impact Texas reports on the economic growth that’s being generated by Gulf Coast refineries revitalized with the help of affordable natural gas produced through hydraulic fracturing. It’s a good-news story:

"Along the Texas Gulf coast in cities where the skylines are formed by the stacks of refineries, they’re talking about a perfect storm headed their way. But this storm has nothing to do with the tropics and everything to do with natural gas. 'It’s almost a perfect storm of low energy costs, low financing costs, low construction costs,' said Bob Leiper, the city manager of Baytown."

Here’s what that “perfect storm” looks like:

Exxon Mobil’s announced plan to expand its refinery/petrochemicals complex with construction of an ethane cracker.Shell and Saudi Aramco’s newly expanded Motiva refinery in Port Arthur, which opened last month after a $10 billion upgrade.Chevron Phillips Chemical’s plan to spend $5 billion on its Baytown petrochemical plant.Seven thousand to 15,000 high-paying construction jobs, which Leiper says will produce a positive ripple across Baytown’s housing and retail sectors.

At the heart of it, NPR says, is surging natural gas production via fracking:

"Hydraulic fracturing has dramatically increased the amount of gas extracted from shale plays around Texas and nearby states with much of it sent in pipelines that come right through Baytown. The cheap gas can be used in a variety of processes to make petrochemicals and plastics and make them more cheaply than competitors overseas. 'This has led to a rebirth of the U.S. petrochemical industry,' said A.J. Teague, COO of Enterprise Products which last month announced its plans to build what it said would be one of the world’s biggest facilities to process 'natural gas liquids' into propylene which is used in plastics."

According to NPR, Texas has spent more than $11 million in state economic development funds on companies to encourage expansion of plants or offices over the past few years. In terms of jobs, the oil and natural gas industry has proven to be a sound investment:

"When a watchdog group, Texans for Public Justice, analyzed whether the public money actually promoted new jobs, it found the companies delivered largely as promised, especially compared to other industries. 'I don’t recall much criticism of oil and gas,' said Craig McDonald, the group’s executive director."

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Collaboration, Not Confrontation with EPA

EPA’s big study of the impact of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water is due in 2014, but an interim report might surface as early as the end of the year. Needed is focused, scientifically solid research that that will advance public discussion of shale energy development that has so much potential for our economy and future energy security.

Unfortunately, EPA’s study plan has deficiencies that ultimately could sap the integrity of the study’s findings. That’s one of the conclusions in a new analysis by the Battelle Memorial Institute. Stephanie Meadows, API upstream senior policy advisor, shared some of the study findings in a conference call with reporters:

“Battelle’s analysis of the plan, which we are releasing today, reinforces many of our previously stated concerns and raises some new ones. It finds deficiencies in the rigor, funding, focus and stakeholder inclusiveness of EPA’s plan. … We’re not calling on EPA to stop its study. We’re calling on them to do it right.”

API and America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA) commissioned the Battelle study after EPA declined to engage with industry in a collaborative review of hydraulic fracturing. Battelle’s Bernard Metzger said his broad-based multidisciplinary team of engineers, oil and natural gas experts, toxicologists and others examined EPA’s study plan to determine its soundness. The findings include:

EPA is reaching beyond the relationship between hydraulic fracturing and drinking water resources, which was its charge from Congress, to broader oil and natural gas industry production activities.The expanded scope suggests there will be added complexity, risk, and uncertainty in EPA’s study, raising the level of difficulty in ensuring a scientifically rigorous result.Site data collected from companies comes from the years 2006-2010, making it likely some data in the final 2014 report could be nearly 10 years old. Changes at company sites in the intervening years likely will “render the data obsolete for the purposes of the study.”Case studies were selected from a limited and statistically biased pool and lack necessary baseline information which may result in incorrect and flawed conclusions. The plan suffers from a lack of “significant” industry collaboration, given industry’s extensive experience and expertise in hydraulic fracturing and associated technologies.

Metzger said gaps in EPA’s study planning can impact data quality:

“Quality cannot be built into the back end of a project through rigorous review; it must be built into each step of a scientifically rigorous process to ensure that the end product is high quality data that is defensible and achieves the study goals.”

ANGA’s Amy Farrell:

“We continue to believe a well-designed, scientifically rigorous study of hydraulic fracturing will confirm our industry’s ongoing commitment to safe and responsible development and that communities don’t have to trade the protection of the environment for the many economic, energy security and clean air benefits natural gas offers. We hope (EPA) will not only consider additional efforts to collaborate with the industry and other key stakeholders moving forward, but that they will carefully review the (Battelle) report and consider the critiques and recommendations for improvement and make adjustments as appropriate.”

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