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Work Group will examine regulatory regimens to ensure public safety and environmental protection
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 24, 2016
Contact: Carol Booth, IOGCC communications manager
405.525.3556 ext. 114
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – State oil and gas regulatory agencies have partnered with the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) and Ground Water Protection Council (GWPC) to proactively address natural gas storage facilities and state regulations by forming a work group to recognize aging infrastructure concerns, identify technological advancements and determine the regulatory challenges.
This effort will be coordinated through the States First Initiative, led by IOGCC and GWPC, which will organize a work group consisting primarily of state regulators from across the country and will include technical advisory experts from academia, industry, non-profit organizations and federal agencies.
The Natural Gas Storage work group plans to provide current solutions, guidelines and other regulatory examples when overseeing the construction, operation, safety and abandonment of storage facilities.
About 120 entities currently operate the nearly 400 active underground storage facilities in the Lower 48 states with the majority lying in the Midwest and Eastern part of the country, according to the Energy Information Administration.
The recent Aliso Canyon event in California has compelled states to revisit their natural gas storage regulations with a focus on technological advancements and aging infrastructure to ensure protection of health, safety and the environment.
While the U.S. Department of Transportation has jurisdiction over the interstate transmission and storage of natural gas, the responsibility for enforcing the safety of storage facilities rests with state oil and gas agencies. From a technical standpoint, a uniform federal regulation is not sound because of the geology, geography and potential risks that vary from state to state.
The work group is another example of states working together to address common issues while allowing states the flexibility to act as they see fit for their regulatory structure and varying geological conditions for continuing regulatory improvement.
States will produce a comprehensive assessment to move proactively to regulate storage of natural gas to minimize risks by adhering to clearly expressed technical guidelines and conservative operating procedures which provide protection when they are employed in a careful and reasoned manner, and therefore, federal regulations may be avoided.
States First is a STATE led effort. Governors, regulators, and policy leaders from oil and gas producing states across the country have partnered with the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission and Ground Water Protection Council in this endeavor.
The Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission is a multi-state government organization with a mission to conserve and maximize domestic oil and natural gas resources while protecting health, safety and the environment.
The Ground Water Protection Council is a national association of state water-protection officials.
This joint initiative allows a unique mix of regulatory experts, state policy and technical staff from across the country to come together and to share the way they do business, review internal operations, react quickly to rapidly emerging technologies and opens up opportunities for extrapolating effective practices from one state to another.
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