On February 11, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a new set of guidelines on the use of diesel fuel in hydraulic fracturing activities. The guidelines include suggestions on well integrity testing and water quality monitoring. The recommendations are intended to help state and tribe permitting decision makers protect underground sources of drinking water from contamination.

The guidelines can be traced back to the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which lists diesel fuels as the only component in the underground injection of fluids or propping agents used in hydraulic fracturing for oil, gas, or geothermal production activities that can be regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). EPA is responsible for implementing SDWA.

According to an EPA analysis of data from voluntary chemical disclosure registry FracFocus, diesel as an ingredient in fracking additives makes up less than 2 percent of fracking fluid. The EPA has reported only one case of diesel being used as a base fluid in hydraulic fracturing instead of water.
 
Industry representatives fear the new guidelines could be used to form new regulations.

Sources: E&E News; EnergyWire; the Environmental Protection Agency; the Government Printing Office; Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works