Green Groups, E&P Players Tie Up for Fracking Standards
Significant players in the US shale gas market have teamed up with environmental groups to create a voluntary set of standards for the use of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in the development of shale gas in the Northeastern United States.
The Center for Sustainable Shale Development (CSSD) sees eleven different organizations including industry players Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron, Consol Energy, joining with Clean Air Task Force, Environmental Defense Fund and Pennsylvania Environmental Council in developing standards to ensure safe and environmentally responsible development of the Appalachian Basin shale gas resources.
The CSSD has initially established 15 standards based on today’s understanding of the risks associated with natural gas development and the technological capacity to minimize those risks. These standards will form the foundation of the CSSD’s independent, third-party certification process.
“CSSD is the result of an unprecedented effort that brought together a group of stakeholders with diverse perspectives, working to create responsible performance standards and a rigorous, third-party evaluation process for shale gas operations,” said Robert Vagt, president of The Heinz Endowments. “This process has demonstrated for us that industry and environmental organizations, working together, can identify shared values and find common ground on standards that are environmentally protective.”
“While shale development has been controversial, everyone agrees that, when done, producers must minimize environmental risk,” said Armond Cohen, executive director, Clean Air Task Force. “These standards are the state of the art on how to accomplish that goal, so we believe all Appalachian shale producers should join CSSD, and the standards should also serve as a model for national policy and practice.”
“CSSD is focusing on the establishment of standards that will initially address the protection of air and water quality and climate, and will be expanded to include other performance standards such as safety,” said Nicholas J. DeIuliis, President, CONSOL Energy. “Fundamentally, the aim is for these standards to represent excellence in performance.”
Royal Dutch Shell plc is ready to be one of the first to go through the certification process, said Paul Goodfellow, vice president of U.S. unconventionals.
Companies can begin seeking certification later this year.