We talked recently about increasing access to domestic oil and natural gas as key to a made-in-America energy plan. Here’s another essential piece: common-sense regulation. Without a reasonable regulatory structure that’s transparent and accessible, red tape could tie up America’s ample energy resources.

In its recent report to the platform committees of the two political parties, API outlined what America’s energy regulatory structure needs:

• Transparency – We need a system that operates in a way that’s clear and unambiguous, with input from all stakeholders, and that bases rules on sound science.
• Sound analysis – We need regulatory processes that are based on legitimate cost-benefit analysis, with implementation timelines that consider economic impacts and resource availabili... more »

We extended first-anniversary greetings to FracFocus.org last month, but it bears repeating as the folks at the Groundwater Protection Council and Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) have produced a new video on the chemical disclosure registry:

Growth of the online registry during its first year was remarkable, with 15,000 wells included in the data base. IOGCC Executive Director Mike Smith from the video:

“It gives educational information about the process, allowing the landowner or interested party to log on and take a look at the well site near his home or anywhere across America for that matter.”

There’s no shale energy revolution without hydraulic fracturing, and FracFocus is integral to maintaining public confidence in that process – to keep that revolut... more »

Check out this video by WPX Energy that describes the careful way energy companies are using water from Donegal Lake in south central Pennsylvania for hydraulic fracturing.

Regulatory Manager David Freudenrich notes that water levels in the lake are carefully monitored to make sure the lake has plenty of water for fishing and surface recreation. Below certain levels companies aren’t allowed to draw water for fracking. They also can’t draw lake water at the beginning of trout season, Freudenrich says. Take a look:

For more information, please visit EnergyFromShale.org.

Takeaways from White House energy and climate adviser Heather Zichal’s appearance at Monday’s hydraulic fracturing workshop in Washington, D.C., hosted by API:

Outreach – The oil and natural gas industry agrees with the Zichal and the administration that constructive dialog on energy issues is, well, constructive. Zichal:

“I give [API President and CEO] Jack [Gerard] and API and a lot of their member companies credit for this. We have worked over the last few months to try to set a better dialogue and create a better working relationship, because what the industry is doing is important from a job-creation perspective.”

Certainly, a fact-based energy discussion has wide benefits. One of the first facts to acknowledge is the role oil and natural gas play in our current energy mix... more »

Over on the White House Blog, there’s genuine enthusiasm for natural gas, and for good reason.  Natural gas is clean-burning, affordable and so abundant that a number of experts describe it as a game-changer, a 100-year energy source.

In the here and now, natural gas that comes from shale through hydraulic fracturing is lifting state and regional economies while revitalizing the U.S. manufacturing sector. Heather Zichal, deputy assistant to the president for energy and climate change:

“Since taking office, President Obama has supported an all-out, all-of-the-above strategy that develops every available source of American energy. A strategy that’s cleaner, cheaper, and full of new jobs. As part of that effort, the Administration has focused on expanding production of natural gas. A... more »