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History
- Referred to environmental conservation
- Referred to environmental conservation
Full text
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Sponsor's memo
BILL NUMBER:S3864
Title of bill
An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to the prohibition of the on-site storage of flowback water
Purpose or general idea of bill
The purpose of this bill is to provide greater oversight of natural gas drilling.
Summary of specific provisions
This bill would:
*prohibit the use of on-site reserve pits for flowback waters;
*require flowback waters to be contained within steel tanks;
*require the removal of flowback waters within seven days of a halt in drilling operations; and,
*require the immediate removal of flowback waters if the site is to be left unattended or if operations are suspended.
Effects of present law which this bill would alter
Amends 23-0305(8) of the ECL to add a new paragraph K.
Justification
New York is home to rich natural gas reserves. In 2006, there were 6,213 active natural gas wells that generated a state record of 55.3 billion cubic feet of natural gas. The Marcellus formation that extends from the Southern Tier into Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia is estimated to have $1 trillion worth of natural gas, and is largely untapped. The rising price of natural gas has led to an increased demand for new sources and made formations like the Marcellus even more attractive.
The extraction of these reserves is accompanied by considerable risk to the environment. In order to fully examine this risk, the Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee has held a series of hearings to examine the environmental protections needed in the Department of Environmental Conservation's (DEC) natural gas, and oil drilling regulatory structure in order to safeguard natural resources. In the course of time hearings, expert testimony was presented on necessary steps to ensure the safety of New York's precious water resources.
The use of on-site reserve pits for flowback waters poses a potential hazard to humans and wildlife. The use of steel tanks will minimize such hazard and also decrease the risk of accidental releases In addition, the presence storage limitations will ensure that flowback waters are not stockpiled on site for unlimited periods of time.
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
None.
Effective date
This Act shall take effect 90 days after enactment.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.