What the hell would the public know about their own self interest. Everybody outside of Chicago is just dumb hicks anyways.
Day 29 12/13/13
Today’s Topic: Who a potentially affected party must petiton in order to participate in a hearing.
- Go to: http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/OnlineCommentSubmittalForm.aspx
- Click the button: Subpart B: Registration and Permitting Procedures
- In the “Section” dropdown box, click: 245.270 Public Hearings
- Submit your comment/s (below)
- Click “Submit”
Section 245.270 Public Hearings
The Act’s provision affording public hearings are critically important to ensuring that the public has the ability to fully understand hydraulic fracturing permits that may affect them, and challenge them if appropriate. We are therefore concerned that some aspects of the draft rules governing hearings could potentially undercut the robust public participation envisioned in the statute.
Section 1-50(b) of the Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act says any person having an interest that is or may be adversely affected [by a fracking permit], can petition the Department for participation in a hearing.
But Subsection 245.270(a)(6) of the Rules raises the bar, requiring the request for hearing to be served upon the Hearing Officer, the Department, and the ap
So Illinois Is Gona Protect Me From Fracking – Not the way it is going
- Go to: http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/OnlineCommentSubmittalForm.aspx
- Click the button: Subpart C: Permit Decisions
- In the “Section” dropdown box, click: 245.300 Permit Decisions
- Submit your comment/s (below)
- Click “Submit”
- To allow horizontal fracking in Illinois,
- To approve horizontal fracking conditionally based on the safeguarding of public health and public safety, and the protection of the environment.
- 224 violations of “Failure to properly store, transport, process or dispose of residual waste.
- 143 violations of “Discharge of pollutional material to the waters of Commonwealth.
- 140 violations of “Pit and tanks not constructed with sufficient capacity to contain pollutional substances.
Bloomington, IL 61701
United States
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Go there and comment. More tomorrow thank God.
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Snap, Crackle And Pop – Radiation from fracking makes the kids glow in the dark
Rice Krispies! But you could find your kids in the dark.
Today (Wednesday, 12/4/13) is Day 20 of the IDNR Comment Period on Fracking.
Day 20
Topic – Radioactivity in fracking operations: Rules need to include testing for all types of radioactive material, including depleted uranium, and set requirements and standards for when radioactivity is found.
- Go to: http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/OnlineCommentSubmittalForm.aspx
- Click the button: Subpart H: High Volume Horizontal Hydraulic Fracturing Preparations and Operations (245.800-245.870)
- In the “Section” dropdown box, click 245.850 Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid and Hydraulic Fracturing Flowback Storage, Disposal or Recycling, Transportation and Reporting Requirements
- Submit your comment/s (below)
- Click “Submit”
Comment/Problem(s)/Revisions Needed:
Subsection (d)(1) of Section 245.850 provides for testing of fracking fluids only one time–during the early flowback stage–and only for “naturally occurring radioactive materials.”
Problem: The limited radioactivity testing requirement in this section does not adequately protect Illinois residents from the spread of dangerous radioactive materials. The statute and the proposed rule call for the testing of flowback (and not produced water) for “naturally occurring radioactive materials”. However, the term “naturally occuring” is not defined in the statute or the proposed rules; DNR could interpret the quoted term so that testing will be required only for the specific radioactive materials that are expected to be found naturally in the subsurface at the well site. Depleted uranium would not be “naturally occurring” at the well site, so it will be undetected by the proposed testing.
Depleted uranium (DU) is a highly dangerous radioactive material with a half-life of 4.5 billion years. It is a waste product left over when uranium is modified to produce fissionable material for nuclear reactors and weapons.
We know that at least one of the major actors in the fracking industry has incorporated Depleted Uranium into its plan for perforating the gun assembly (for use in a wellbore) in horizontal fracturing operations. (See U.S. Patent No. 2011000069, “perforating gun assembly for use in a wellbore *** wherein the secondary pressure generator is selected from the group consisting of *** depleted uranium”; assignee of patent: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.) Note that, in this case, radioactive material would be “added” radioactive material, not “naturally occuring.”
Revisions Needed:
In order to protect the public health and safety and to preserve the health of our environment, DNR must require specific testing for DU among other types of radioactive material in flowback and in produced water and set standards and requirements for when radioactivity is found.
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Bloomington, IL 61701
United States
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What Toxics Are In That Fracking Soup – Under this regulation we may never know
Seriously, this means that they can brink “stuff” into this state with no inspection and inject it into our soils? That is off the charts.
- Go to: http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/OnlineCommentSubmittalForm.aspx
- Click the button: Subpart G Chemical Disclosure; Trade Secrets(245.700-245.730)
- In the “Section” dropdown box, click: 245.720 Department Publication of Disclosures and Claims of Trade Secret
- Submit your comment/s (below)
- Click “Submit”
- “Competitive value” is not defined in the various administrative code definitions.
- There is no IDNR administrative criteria provided which is the basis of “competitive value” other than, apparently, a self-identified one provided by the fracking operator.
- Undefined and catch-all allowances for generic “competitive value” open the door for any and all dangerous chemicals to be undisclosed simply based on the operators desire to do so.
- Individual ingredients in the various chemical products used during hydraulic fracturing cannot be considered trade secrets under the criteria “competitive value”. The regulations should be revised to state that information on file with IDNR must be disclosed to the public.
- Raising such an allowance for a fracking operator to not disclose potentially dangerous chemicals based on “competitive value” automatically gives them more power than the basic claim of the law which is to protect the environment of Illinois.
- “Competitive value” must be fully defined within the rulemaking.
- Competitive value must not in any way supersede a determination of the public right to know and the basic legislative and Illinois Constitutional provision of a healthy and safe environment for its citizens.
- Any conflict between “competitive value” and the public right to know must be decided on the inherent protection of the citizens and the environment.
Bloomington, IL 61701
United States
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Frackers Must Post Bonds To Drill – Doesn’t that mean they are going to do damage
Yes and the damage they will do is a lot more than 50,000 $$$ they initially put up.
- Click the button: Subpart B: Registration and Permitting Procedures
- In the “Section” dropdown box, click: 245.220 Permit Bonds or Other Collateral Securities
- Submit your comment/s (below)
- Click “Submit”
Bloomington, IL 61701
United States
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Go there and comment. More later.
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IDNR Says Your Are Not Sick From Fracking Unless You Can Prove It
So this regulation says essentially that you are never sick from fracking unless the Frackers and the IDNR agree that you are sick from fracking AND your doctor can prove it. Now of course you can’t prove it because they will not release a list of the chemicals that they are using so you can test the environment for the chemicals so they can not say that they are naturally occurring. Got that?
Today is Day 8 of the 45 day Comment period on fracking in Illinois. We start week 2.
Today’s comment is on the circular definition of an “affected patient.”
Here’s what to do to make your comment today:
- Go to: http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/OnlineCommentSubmittalForm.aspx
- Click the button: Subpart A: General Provisions
- In the “Section” dropdown box, click 245.110 Definitions
IDNR identifies the definition of an “Affected Patient” as “a person receiving health care services from a health professional for an illness or injury diagnosed by the health professional to be caused by exposure to any chemicals used in high volume horizontal hydraulic fracturing operations that are subject to a claim of trade secret by a permittee or contractor.”
PROBLEM: This definition is circular: in order to learn what chemical was used, a physician must first test for that chemical so s/he can prove s/he has a right to disclosure of the proprietary chemical. How can a doctor diagnose exposure to a secret chemical used in high volume fracking before s/he knows what the secret cheemicals are to test for?
- Copy your e-mail and send it to JCAR@ilga.gov
- Click submit.
Thank you!
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Bloomington, IL 61701
United States
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A Whole Lot Of Shaking Could Go On – Those old Sky Scrapers could come a tumblen down
It is true none of the tall buildings in either St. Louis or Memphis are even earthquake resistant let alone earthquake proof. To top that off they are built on alluvial soil. Then there are the bridges across the Mississippi, Nebraska and Ohio rivers.So even a moderate earthquake in the area could be its own little disaster movie.
- Go to: http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/OnlineCommentSubmittalForm.aspx
- Click the button: Part 240: Seismicity
- In the “Section” dropdown box, click 240/796 Seismicity
- Please include the references (links) at the end of the comment
- http://www.earth.columbia.edu/articles/view/3072 : A new study is the latest to tie a string of unusual earthquakes, in this case, in central Oklahoma, to the injection of wastewater deep underground. Researchers now say that the magnitude 5.7 earthquake near Prague, Okla., on Nov. 6, 2011, may also be the largest ever linked to wastewater injection. Felt as far away as Milwaukee, more than 800 miles away, the quake—the biggest ever recorded in Oklahoma–destroyed 14 homes, buckled a federal highway and left two people injured.
- http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/early/2013/03/26/G34045.1
- http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?ID=3706&from=rss#.UohRF40hRL8 “Why America’s Heartland is Earthquake Country”, United States Geological Service, September 30. 2013
- “Enhanced Remote Earthquake Triggering at Fluid-Injection Sites in the Midwestern United States”, Nicholas J. van der Elst et al., DOI: 10.1126/science.1238948, Science 341, 164 (2013).
Bloomington, IL 61701
United States
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Illinois Department Of Natural Resources Is Incompetant – But we kinda knew that
This was forwarded to me by Doctor Lora and other people have pointed out that this has been going on. This is why in my first post I said go to this website:
http://www.ilagainstfracking.org/
They will deliver a printed copy to IDNR which gets you around the whole computer/internet thing.
AND Dr. Laura is suggesting that you send your comments to JCAR who must approve the final regulations before they become law. I am not sure how effective that would be but it takes so little time it can’t hurt. But still run them through IDNR repeatedly if you have to.
If they can’t get their website right, how are they going to get the rules right?
— General Summary of Rules on Radioactivity
Subpart H: High Volume Horizontal Hydraulic Fracturing Preparations and Operations (245.800-245.870)
245.850 Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid and Hydraulic Fracturing Flowback Storage, Disposal or Recycling, Transportation and Reporting Requirements
Comment: Subsection (d)(1) of Section 245.850 provides for testing radioactivity only one time–during the early flowback stage–and only for “naturally occurring radioactive materials”. The problems with this are identified below.
Problems:
The proposed rules do not include any standards or protocols to follow if testing of flowback water shows unacceptable levels of radioactivity.
The proposed rules do not require the testing of “produced water”, which is the water produced from a well in conjunction with oil or natural gas production. This is where radioactivity is most likely to show up. It should be noted that while these Rules have been purported to be the strongest in the nation, PA law requires the testing of produced water at two separate intervals.
The proposed rules do not require testing for added radioactive materials, like depleted uranium, which can be used in the perforation/fracturing operation.
The proposed rules do not test work areas for levels of radioactivity that would call for OSHA standards of occupational safety.
These deficiencies, cumulatively or singly, would pose a significant risk to the public health and safety, property, aquatic life, and wildlife, in violation of section 1-75(a)(2) of the Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act.
— Produced Water Needs to Be Tested for Radioactivity (same subpart-H, and section: 245.850)
Notably absent from this section is a requirement for the testing of “produced water”, the fluid that returns from the well later during production and is most likely to contain radioactivity. Under the proposed rules, “produced water” can be stored on site and/or can be “recycled”, yet there is no testing requirement.
Naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) and technologically enhanced naturally occuring radioactive material are both found in “produced water”. See Technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive materials in the oil industry (TENORM), Nukleonika 2009; 54(1):3?9, and sources cited therein, especially for TENORM in produced water in the U.S., available athttp://www.nukleonika.pl/…/full/vol54_2009/v54n1p003f.pdf. See also
NORM is also found on scale in oil pipes and on fracking equipment. (See Kentucky Resources Council Proposes Comprehensive Plan For Investigating Radiological Contamination In Martha Oil Field. August 11, 2005.http://www.kyrc.org/webnewspro/112381723236086.shtml.)
IDNR’s definitions of “flowback water” and “produced water” are different. They are treated differently by both the Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act and by the DNR Rules. The Department knows that produced water will be in contact with the naturally occurring radioactive elements in the ground for a longer period that the flowback and that it is much more likely to be radioactive. Therefore it should require it to be tested and handled accordingly.
Problems: Failure to test produced water for radioactivity is problematic for a variety of reasons including:
The health and safety of workers on the site who will be unaware of the levels of radioactivity they are being exposed to. The health and safety of workers transporting produced water who will also be in the dark regarding the levels of radioactivity they will be exposed to.
The risk of storing radioactive material in tanks not created for storing radioactive materials.
The risk of “recycling” produced water—radioactivity cannot be removed by recycling.
The risk to the public in transporting radioactive materials
Argonne National Laboratory recently cautioned about radiological doses: “It is commonly accepted that efforts should be undertaken at all times to keep radiological doses ‘as low as reasonably achievable,’ which is referred to as the ALARA principle or requirement.” Overview of Radiological Dose and Risk Assessment (April 2011). DNR is failing to even adequately test for radioactivity and therefore, will not know the levels of radioactivity. How, then, can DNR adequately protect workers and the general public?
Revisions needed:
At a bare minimum, the rules should require that “produced water” be tested at two separate intervals across time for radioactivity. This is already required in Pennsylvania. The rules should also require that the requirements of the Illinois Low Level Radioactivity Waste Management Act be followed.
— Rules need to include requirements or standards when radioactivity is found (same subpart-H and section:245.850)
The proposed rules include no follow-up requirements or standards if testing shows radioactivity levels in flowback to be high. In other words, these proposed rules treat flowback the same whether it is highly radioactive or not! DNR knows that naturally occurring radioactivity material occurs in Illinois oil and gas operations. See 62 Ill. Admin. Code secs. 240.860(e)(3), 240.861(k)(1)(C).
Revisions Needed: The rules must specify how flowback AND produced water will be treated if they test positive for radioactivity. The rules should also require that the requirements of the Illinois Low Level Radioactivity Waste Management Act be followed.
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Fracking Will Set Off The New Madras Fault – In Illinois a whole lot of shaking going on
This whole earthquake thing has me shaking in my boots. No really. The last time New Madras went off the Mississippi River ran backwards and two mammoth lakes in Kentucky were created. There was no St. Louis or Memphis to be devastated. This is a big deal.
USED on Day 2 on 11/16/13
Topic: Fracking and Seismic Activity (Earthquakes)
Radio button: Part 240 : Seismicity (240.796)
Use any of the comments below related to when fracking causes earthquakes (“induced seismicity”)
NOTE: Every topic address must be entered as a separate comment.
· COMMENT: The Rules contain language about earthquakes and, on a broader level, they also assume that fracking indeed causes earthquakes. The rules describe a whole series of fracking created earthquake levels of intensity. Why would the state allow any business activity that includes the real possibility of it creating earthquakes when done in an otherwise proper manner – especially in a geography known for major earthquakes?
· COMMENT: The rules are silent regarding broader concerns regarding how fracking created earthquakes will affect existing earthquake prone communities. There is no mention of scientific review or study of the effect of fracking earthquakes within the Wabash Valley and New Madrid Seismic Zones. The Illinois Emergency Management Agency identifies southern IL with its most severe earthquake zone ratings of “Destructive “and “Ruinous”. How does IDNR justify allowing any fracking in these areas when industry best practices say there should be no fracking in seismic zones?
· COMMENT: Rules define various intensities of fracking caused earthquakes by a color code system. Enforcement doesn’t begin until “yellow light alert”, (a magnitude of at least 3.0 but less than 5.0). This color coding system does not appear to be used by the federal USGS, the federal agency responsible for monitoring earthquakes. Why would IDNR use a system not used nationally? What is the purpose of IDNR’s color coded system and what value does it add to protect citizens who might be affected by said quakes?
· COMMENT: A fracking site can be responsible for creating up to 4 earthquakes up to a level of 4.9 magnitude WITHOUT a mandatory shut-down order by the state. A 4.9 earthquake is a serious and newsworthy event – (USGS description: “Sensation like a heavy truck striking building. Standing motor cars rocked noticeably.”) What justification does IDNR to allow this?
· COMMENT: Mandatory shut-down of a site is based on a patchwork of multiple earthquakes at multiple times with varying intensity. For example, if an earthquake caused by fracking “causes significant damage” or a magnitude of 5.0 or greater the state will shut-down the frack site. A 5.0 earthquake is described by USGS as “Felt by all, many frightened.” The rules use a dangerous, high threshold of earthquake intensity for a mandatory shut-down. The fracking caused earthquake literally has to frighten people or break something before the state will step in. What is the justification for such a high threshold?
· COMMENT: If a shut-down order is made, the fracking company gets a hearing, the purpose of which is to “mitigate induced seismicity events near the permitted well”. To “mitigate” is to minimize, not eliminate earthquakes caused by fracking. As with the overall message of the earthquake rules, the intent appears to not eliminate earthquakes caused by fracking but actually permit them. What does IDNR have to say to justify this?
· COMMENT: The penalty for failing to attend an earthquake hearing or continuing to frack after causing a serious, reported earthquake is $50 for a first time violation. The rules define these violations as “Administrative penalties”. This amount is a little less than the cost of a dinner and a movie. Even with 4 or more earthquake violations, the maximum fine is only $500, arguably an acceptable business expense. How is this justifiable?
· COMMENT: Will fracking companies be held responsible for all monetary damages caused by earthquakes?
· COMMENT: If the frack site continues to operate in violation of a state order regarding it creating earthquakes the minimum fine is $100. Who is making up these ridiculously industry-slanted rules?
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Go there and comment for God’s sake. More today.
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Chevron Brings Good Fracks To You – Illinois is going to get the heck fracked out of it
Will Chevron have wells in Illinois? Probably not. They are to busy illegally fracking their wells off of California’s shoreline. But chatting them up can’t hurt.
Day 1 on 11/15/13
Topic: Who can and can’t testify and public hearings when fracking permits are requested.
Go to: http://www.dnr.illinois.gov/OilandGas/Pages/OnlineCommentSubmittalForm.aspx
Radio Button: Subpart B: Registration and Permitting Procedures (245.200-245.270)
Comment: Because air and water travel freely, IDNR should not limit comments during public hearings to individuals living within 1500 feet of wells. Toxins can travel far beyond 1500 feet via air and water. Therefore, any person, regardless of where they live, should be allowed to testify.
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