Nearly a year-and-a-half after state lawmakers passed the Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act, a 12-member legislative committee gave the seal of approval for rules regulating fracking in Illinois.
The Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, co-chaired by Democratic Sen. Don Harmon of Oak Park and state Rep. Timothy Schmitz, R-Geneva, unanimously approved the rules during a hearing in Chicago on Nov. 6.
After much anticipation — and frustration — by pro-fracking groups, oil and gas drillers can begin applying for permits in the coming months.
The Chicago Tribune has more on the permitting process.
Oil and gas drillers may apply for a permit to begin operations 30 days after registration by paying a nonrefundable fee of $13,500. The permit application must disclose how and where the well will be drilled, the amount of fluid to be used and at what pressure it will be injected into the well. Drillers also will have to disclose what chemicals will be used at what concentration and plans for everything from well safety to waste containment.
Within five days of receipt, the Department of Natural Resources must post a copy of the permit application on its website and provide dates for the public to comment. The department has 60 days to approve or reject applications.
Land owners in southern Illinois, particularly those who live on the Illinois Basin where the majority of oil production occurs, say it will create thousands of jobs in a region besieged by high unemployment rates. The Tribune reported in October that dozens of Wayne County landowners filed a lawsuit against Gov. Pat Quinn and Marc Miller, head of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, for delaying the issuance of fracking permits.
Rod Taylor, an Indianapolis-based attorney representing the landowners in the lawsuit, told the Tribune that some energy firms that planned to drill in the New Albany shale formation, believed to have rich deposits of oil and gas, have abandoned Illinois because they couldn’t get drilling permits.
‘What happened was the state of Illinois slammed the door on permits for horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing,’ Taylor said.
He argued that the state essentially has ‘condemned a portion of the New Albany shale’ as if it were seized through an eminent domain procedure without compensation.
The legal argument being used is called ‘inverse condemnation.’ It’s the idea that regulation of a property’s use has gone ‘too far,’ depriving the owner of a property’s value or utility. The precedent for such an argument was established in a 1922 U.S. Supreme Court Case, Pennsylvania Coal Co. v. Mahon.
Taylor said that because the state won’t issue permits for fracking, which is not illegal in the state, landowners have lost the right to sell that land for other purposes.
Growing Resources and Opportunity for the Workforce in Illinois has been at the forefront of legislative efforts to allow for the development of shale gas. The organization consists of various business, construction, transportation, labor and agricultural groups, according to its website, which displays a clock that keeps track of “time lost waiting” for fracking in Illinois — down to seconds.
GROW-IL Co-Chair, Mark Denzler, who is also the vice president and chief operating officer of the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, said in a statement his organization is pleased and appreciative JCAR implemented the “long overdue law.”
“Today’s unanimous vote will allow Illinois to finally begin issuing permits and developing an innovative energy sector,” Denzler said. “This exciting development will create much needed jobs and significant revenue for our state economy. Industry, labor and environmental groups worked together to include the strongest safeguards that will protect the environment while stimulating the economy.”
The New Albany shale gas formation, the largest in southern Illinois, would create or support a minimum of 1,000 jobs each year and potentially add 47,000 new jobs annually, translating to a $9.5 billion impact on the state economy, according to GROW-IL.
Environmental concerns over fracking typically revolve around possible groundwater contamination, among other things, though a “myth vs. fact” sheet on GROW-IL’s website says the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency nor state regulators have confirmed any actual instances of contaminated water.
Horizontal hydraulic fracturing extracts oil and gas trapped in shale formations by drilling into sedimentary rock structures then injecting a mixture of water, chemical additives and sand. The additives used in the process can be found on fracfocus.org and energyindepth.org.
The discovery of large shale field reserves across the U.S. has led to a rapid increase in natural gas and oil production. Proponents argue it will help negate the reliance on Persian Gulf countries for oil. Saudi Arabia, one of 12 member states in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), recently slashed its crude oil prices due to unease over U.S. fracking and its effect on the global oil market.
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Kevin Hoffman is a Reboot Illinois staff writer who graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in journalism, political science and international studies. He believes keeping citizens informed and politicians in check is the best way to improve Illinois and bring about common sense reform. Follow us on Facebook.