‘Halliburton Loophole’ False, Lawyer Claims
Wheeling WV Intelligencer
16
December 2010
By Casey Junkins
WHEELING - Those who oppose the practice of hydraulic fracturing to
access natural gas often blame the so-called "Halliburton Loophole" for
protecting fracking from federal regulation.
However, Armando Benincasa, a lawyer for Steptoe & Johnson, said
Wednesday the 2005 Federal Energy Policy Act only made the exemption
for oil and gas exploration official.
"The 2005 law put into legislation what had been up to that time the
accepted (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) policy/interpretation
that oil and gas exploration activities were not subject to the
restrictions of the Safe Drinking Water Act," Benincasa said following
Steptoe & Johnson's Wednesday "webinar" on the topic. A webinar is
basically a lecture that is broadcast via the Internet.
"Oil and gas exploration were never intended to be subject to the Safe
Drinking Water Act," he added.
Fracking takes place after gas drillers bore horizontal shafts deep
into the earth. Millions of gallons of water, sand and chemicals are
then forced down the hole at high pressure, which breaks apart the
Marcellus Shale and releases some of the the trillions of cubic feet of
natural gas trapped in the formation. Some have called into question
the chemicals used in fracking, raising concern that they could, either
now or in the future, find their way into underground water tables and
contaminate water sources.
Republican strategist Karl Rove recently told natural gas industry
leaders in Pittsburgh that the newly elected GOP House will ensure the
U.S. EPA will not be able to regulate fracking. Rove also stressed this
would ensure the Halliburton Loophole - named for the petroleum
services giant - stays open.
U.S. Sen. Robert Casey, D-Pa., during the current congressional session
introduced the "Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals
Act" - more commonly known as the FRAC Act - to allow the EPA to
oversee the process, thereby closing the loophole.
Another aspect of the FRAC Act calls for requiring companies such as
Chesapeake Energy, Range Resources and Halliburton to disclose the
chemicals they use for fracking. Many of these companies, however, have
already revealed this information, Benincasa said.