Law Commons^™

Wyoming V. Zinke, Jaclyn Van Natta

Public Land & Resources Law Review

In Wyoming v. Zinke, the Bureau of Land Management attempted to update a regulation governing hydraulic fracturing from the 1980s, but oil and gas industry companies opposed, and brought suit. The district court held in favor of the industry petitioners, and the Bureau of Land Management and citizen group intervenors appealed. In the wake of appeal, Donald J. Trump became President of the United States. The administration change caused the Bureau of Land Management to alter its position and align with the new administration. Secretary of the Interior, Ryan Zinke, via executive order, began rescinding the new fracking regulation, …

Defining And Closing The Hydraulic Fracturing Governance Gap, Joshua Galperin, Grace Heusner, Allison Sloto

Articles

As recent examples in Texas and Colorado have shown, if local governments ban fracking, they risk pushback from state governments. This pushback, in turn, can result in preemption making an outright local ban on fracking self-defeating because it could ultimately result in less local control over the impacts of hydraulic fracturing. Given this potentially self-defeating nature of local fracking bans, local governments should address the impacts of fracking through more traditional local governance mechanisms that do not pose as great a risk to local authority.

On this premise, this Article seeks to make the case for the importance of, and …

How Local Is Local?: A Response To Professor David B. Spence's The Political Economy Of Local Vetoes, Joshua P. Fershee

Joshua P Fershee

Professor Fershee responds to Professor David B. Spence’s article about local hydraulic fracturing bans: The Political Economy of Local Vetoes, 93 Texas L. Rev. 351 (2015). Professor Spence notes that the shale oil and gas debate provides an example of “an age-old political problem that the law is called upon to solve: the conflict between an intensely held minority viewpoint and a less intense, contrary view held by the majority.” In resolving such conflicts, Spence suggests that courts should resolve such “conflicts in ways that encourage states and local governments to regulate in ways that weigh both the costs and …

Comments: Hydraulic Fracturing: Evaluating Fracking Regulations, Blake Lara

University of Baltimore Journal of Land and Development

The demand for nonrenewable energy resources has increased in nations around the world despite the reality that these remaining resources are both scarce, and increasingly difficult to acquire. In 2010 Earth's reserves held the equivalent of approximately 406 billion tons of natural gas and oi1. However, at yearly consumption rates, this amount would only serve the planet's energy needs for about fifty years. The rapid elimination of conventional sources for oil and gas has led to the utilization of alternative methods to access sources that were previously not worth drilling. In the United States, for example, there are several types …

Legal Tools For Local Control Of Oil And Gas Development: Successes, Challenges, And Opportunities – Focusing On Select Eastern And Western U.S. States With Current And Potential Oil/Gas Development, Gabrielle M. Ostermayer

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In response to the rise in unconventional oil and gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing, coupled with concerns over local environmental, social, and health impacts, and weak state regulatory oversight, many communities have chosen to assert zoning or regulatory control over oil and gas development. However, the legal framework that enables and constrains local government powers varies by state, based on diverse statutory and constitutional language as well as the preemption of local control by state agency regulations governing industry development. Through a series of case studies, this article identifies successful, legally defensible strategies for local control of oil and gas …

Highest Court In New York Affirms Local Power To Regulate Hydrofracking, John R. Nolon, Jessica A. Bacher

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

In one of the most anxiously awaited New York land use decisions in recent memory, the State’s highest court held that local governments have the power to regulate hydrofracking under their authority to enact zoning ordinances. Both the Towns of Dryden and Middlefield enacted zoning laws that entirely banned gas drilling and associated activities within their borders. The plaintiffs, a private gas company in one case and a private property owner in the other, claimed that a supersession clause in the State Oil, Gas, and Solution Mining Law (OGSML) preempted local authority. After reviewing the plain language of the OGSML, …

Agenda: Natural Resource Industries And The Sustainability Challenge, University Of Colorado Boulder. Getches-Wilkinson Center For Natural Resources, Energy, And The Environment, University Of Colorado Boulder. The Colorado Law Energy Innovation Initiative

Natural Resource Industries and the Sustainability Challenge (Martz Winter Symposium, February 27-28)

"An International Conference hosted by The Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy, and the Environment and The Colorado Law Energy Innovation Initiative."

For more than two decades, sustainability has gained currency as a broad organizing principle for efforts to develop and use energy, natural resources, and the environment in ways that allow society to meet its needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. More recently, sustainability has been embraced by businesses across multiple sectors as part of a broader movement of corporate social responsibility. Hardly a day goes by without news of another corporate initiative …

Land Use Law Update: The Court Of Appeals Issues A Victory For Home Rule In Wallach V. Town Of Dryden And Cooperstown Holstein Corp. V. Town Of Middlefield, Sarah Adams-Schoen

Scholarly Works

In the midst of the often heated controversy swirling around the issue of hydraulic fracturing (commonly referred to as “hydrofracking” and “fracking”), New York’s Court of Appeals recently issued a straightforward ruling, which focused on long-established precedent concerning the right of municipalities to regulate mining land uses, rather than focusing on the contentious economic or environmental issues surrounding the fracking debate. This article discusses that ruling.

Agenda: Water, Oil And Gas: Nuts And Bolts Of Oil And Gas Leases, Surface Use Agreements, And Water Rights For Non-Oil And Gas Attorneys, University Of Colorado Boulder. Getches-Wilkinson Center For Natural Resources, Energy, And The Environment, Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute (Denver, Colo.), Colorado Bar Association. Natural Resources & Energy Section

Water, Oil and Gas: Nuts and Bolts of Oil and Gas Leases, Surface Use Agreements, and Water Rights for Non-Oil and Gas Attorneys (September 26)

This third program in the Water, Oil, and Gas 101 series was designed to provide those who don’t practice in the area with essential information regarding leases, surface use agreements, siting considerations for oil and gas facilities, the resolution of disputes before the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC), the ins and outs of nontributary and produced nontributary ground water, and water rights as an asset.

Program topics include:

• Oil and Gas Leases
• Surface Use Agreements (SUAs)
• Government’s Role in Authorizing Locations for Oil and Gas Development
• Technical Aspects of Nontributary and Produced Nontributary Ground Water
• Produced Nontributary Ground …

From Coase To Collaborative Property Decision-Making: Green Economy Innovation, Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

Prof. Elizabeth Burleson

This Article considers the advantages and disadvantages of market-based program design, natural gas regulation, and enhanced international understanding. Transitioning to a green economy involves dedicating efforts towards environmentally sound energy innovation. RGGI, natural gas, and climate change represent sustainability challenges. Optimizing cooperative transboundary green innovation can facilitate inclusive decision-making just as public participation by civil society can help economies transition to environmentally sound energy use. Building upon progress made in the human rights and environment fields can advance both and enhance resilience.

Slides: The Logistics And Energy Needs Of Oil Shale Extraction, Alan K. Burnham

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Dr. Alan K. Burnham, Chief Technology Officer, American Shale Oil, LLC

10 slides

Slides: The Elusive Bonanza, Randy Udall

The Promise and Peril of Oil Shale Development (February 5)

Presenter: Randy Udall, Co-founder, Association for the Study of Peak Oil-USA

62 slides

Slides: Comprehensive Drilling Plans, Dave Neslin

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Dave Neslin, Director, Colorado OIl and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC)

8 slides

Slides: Rifle, Silt, New Castle Community Development Plan: A Collaborative Planning Approach To Natural Gas Development, Peggy Utesch

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Peggy Utesch, Movin' Forward Consulting

25 slides

Slides: Innovative Best Practices For The Western Slope: Stormwater Management Solutions And Philosophy For The Oil And Gas Industry, Kyle N. Schildt

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Kyle N. Schildt, P.E., LT Environmental, Inc.

12 slides

Slides: Bmp Project, Kent Kuster

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Kent Kuster, Consultation Coordinator, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE)

17 slides

Slides: Intermountain Oil And Gas Bmp Project, Kathryn Mutz

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Kathryn Mutz, Natural Resources Law Center

19 slides

Slides: The Use Of Terrestrial Cyanobacteria For The Rehabilitation Of Arid Soils: Not Just Another Good Idea, Timothy Flynn

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Dr. Timothy Flynn, Primordial Solutions Inc.

42 slides

Slides: Energy By Design: Possible Bmp For Mitigation Planning, Dave Gann

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Dave Gann, The Nature Conservancy

15 slides

Slides: Disappearing Roads--An Efd Project: An Exploration Into Low Impact And Efficient Gas Field Drilling, Charles Dolan

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Rich Haut, Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC), for Dr. Charles Dolan, University of Wyoming, Environmentally Friendly Drilling Program

25 slides

Slides: Recommended Best Management Practices For Plants Of Concern: Practices Developed To Reduce The Impacts Of Oil And Gas Development Activities To Plants Of Concern, Brian Kurzel, Colorado Rare Plant Conservation Initiative

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Brian Kurzel, Colorado Natural Areas Program (CNAP)

27 slides

Slides: Best Management Practices: Planning, Leasing, Permitting, Jamie Connell

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenter: Jamie Connell, Northwest Colorado District Manager, U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Colorado

23 slides

Slides: Introduction To Constructive Engagement In The Oil And Gas Industry, Susan T. Wildau, Christopher W. Moore

Best Practices for Community and Environmental Protection (October 14)

Presenters: Susan T. Wildau and Christopher W. Moore, CDR Associates (Collaborative Decision Resources), Boulder, CO

22 slides

Slides: Energy Production And The West's Wild Places, Amy Mall

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: Amy Mall, Senior Policy Analyst, Natural Resources Defense Council

28 slides

Federal, State, And Local Regulatory Framework For Permitting Of Cbm Development, Kate Zimmerman

Coalbed Methane Development in the Intermountain West (April 4-5)

17 pages.

Contains 5 pages of endnotes.

Coalbed Methane In The San Juan Basin Of Colorado And New Mexico, Catherine Cullicott, Carolyn Dunmire, Jerry Brown, Chris Calwell

Coalbed Methane Development in the Intermountain West (April 4-5)

35 pages (includes color illustrations and maps).

Contains 6 pages of endnotes.