Geoscience Policy Monthly Review
july 2015
The Monthly Review is part of a continuing effort to improve communications about the role of geoscience in policy.
Current and archived monthly reviews are available online.Subscribe to receive the Monthly Review directly.
natural resources
House Committee reviews success of Helium Stewardship Act
July 8, 2015
On July 8, the House Natural Resources subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources held a hearing reviewing the 2013 Helium Stewardship Act’s (HSA) implementation. The Helium Stewardship Act charges the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) with auctioning off some of the helium held in storage by the federal government to raise money and provide stability in the helium market. The hearing reviewed the results of the first federal helium auction, which earned the federal government substantial revenue for the helium, but angered private sector consumers.
To enable private market competition, the Act allows refiners to buy raw helium from government storage, process it, and then sell it. It also allows helium merchants to buy the raw helium from the federal government and create “tolling” agreements with refiners where refiners use excess capacity in their refineries to process helium. This mechanism, while allowing those without the refining ability to bid on raw helium, leads to tension between refiners and merchants. Tolling agreements are essential for allowing merchants to produce helium; without access to refineries, merchants cannot use the helium from the federal government.
At the auction, eleven of thirteen plots of helium were bought by two refiners, signaling a failure of the HSA to provide adequate competition. Everyone agreed that a steady supply of helium is vital to the science community. Dr. William Halperin stressed that fluctuations in the price of helium have the ability to disrupt scientific research by pricing researchers away from helium’s unique cooling properties.
Sources: AGI reporting, E&E News
Updated August 17, 2015
House Subcommittee hears testimony on BLM hydraulic fracturing regulations
July 15, 2015
At a July 15 hearing held by the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources, Neil Kornze, Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), testified on BLM’s proposed regulations for hydraulic fracturing on federal and tribal lands.
Representatives inquired about granting variances, or partial exemptions from the BLM rule, to states that already have more stringent regulations than what the BLM rule would require. Rep. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) defended Wyoming’s disclosure and monitoring regulations and asked whether BLM could grant a wholesale exemption to Wyoming. Kornze said that BLM may grant variances to state regulators, but noted that BLM cannot move forward with rule implementation until a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of Wyoming is resolved. Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) disputed the legality of granting variances on the grounds that “delegating regulatory authority to states without specific statutory approval” was not part of the BLM’s authority.
According to Kornze, BLM estimates that implementing its regulations would cost about $11,000 for an average well; however, Lloyd Hetrick, testifying for Newfield Exploration Co., said that delays and well shutdowns would make this price much higher. Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-CA) contended that current BLM regulations, adopted about thirty years ago, have not kept pace with technological advances in hydraulic fracturing, such as horizontal drilling and increased well depth.
Sources: E&E News, House.gov, BLM.gov
OCS seismic surveying hearing underscores differences in scientific opinion
July 14, 2015
The House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources heard testimony from industry representatives and academics on the permitting process for seismic surveys to prospect for oil and gas. These surveys help geologists determine the exact location and accessibility of oil and gas prospects by towing a specialized air gun that releases sound waves through water and collects data from the reflections. The data can also inform dredging and hazard assessments and help in research.
Industry witnesses called attention to congressional action and executive orders delaying a seismic survey of the Atlantic outer continental shelf (OCS) for more than thirty years, despite advances in hydrocarbon extraction techniques.
Republican House members pointed out the difference in permit approval times. An academic non-harassing permit, where surveys are not in the range of marine life, can take four months to approve, whereas permits that could disrupt or harm marine life can take up to a year or more.
Dr. Douglas Nowacek, a professor at Duke University, informed the committee that the sound waves in water that define seismic surveys disrupt marine life. Alternatively, Dr. Bob Gisner, Director of Marine Environment at the International Association of Geophysical Contractors, argued that the strength of the sound was overstated, and that low levels did not greatly affect marine life. Nowacek advocated constraining the seismic surveys to only those areas that showed potential for oil and gas extraction in order to limit damage; however, Gisner advocated complete surveying of the OCS to determine the potential for new deposits using 3D seismic imaging, a technology unavailable during the last survey.
Sources: E&E News
Updated August 17, 2015