Fracking Ban

At a regularly scheduled quarterly business meeting convened last week, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) voted to proceed with the drafting of regulations that would prohibit the production of natural gas using hydraulic fracturing or other horizontal drilling processes in any location within the Delaware River Basin.

That geographic area encompasses some 13,539 square miles in 42 counties in Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. The DRBC observed that a temporary, informal moratorium on fracking activity is already in place in the region.

However, by electing to go forward with revised regulations, the DRBC indicated that it was seeking to make that moratorium permanent. The resolution approved by the DRBC instructs its executive director to prepare and publish for comment amended regulations that would proscribe fracking within the affected territory. The new rules also will cover requirements for the safe storage, treatment, and disposal of chemicals and wastewater previously used in hydraulic fracturing operations.

The executive director was tasked with completing the proposed new regulations by November 30 of this year. The public will then be able to submit comments on the plan. According to the DRBC, it does not anticipate issuing a final decision on the new rules until sometime in 2018.