Senate Bill S6891

2011-2012 Legislative Session

Relates to natural gas production discharges from high-volume hydraulic fracturing; requires notification within two hours by any person causing such a discharge

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

Please enter your contact information

First Name

Last Name

Email Address

A valid email address is required.

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Actions

View Actions

Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Apr 04, 2012	referred to environmental conservation

co-Sponsors

View additional co-sponsors

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A10208
Current Committee:: Senate Environmental Conservation
Law Section:: Environmental Conservation Law
Laws Affected:: Add Art 23 Title 29 §§23-2901 - 23-2907, En Con L

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to natural gas production discharges from high-volume hydraulic fracturing and requires notification within two hours by any person causing such a discharge; requires the department to notify the general public within 48 hours via their website.

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                BILL NUMBER:S6891

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to high
volume hydraulic fracturing
natural gas
production discharge notifications

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To require notification within two
hours by any person causing a discharge of substances associated with
natural gas production where high-volume hydraulic fracturing is
utilized.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends article 23 of the environmental conservation law by
adding a new title 29 which provides for high-volume hydraulic
fracturing natural gas production discharge notification. Any person
responsible for a discharge shall immediately notify the department,
but in no case later than two hours after the discharge. The
department shall notify the public through a new or existing database
via its website, updated daily, within forty-eight hours of receipt
of such notification. This section further provides penalties for
violations of any provisions of this title or any rule or regulation
promulgated thereunder.

Section 2 provides the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:
This bill would require prompt reporting of substances used in or
associated with high-volume hydraulic fracturing. High-volume
hydraulic fracturing wastewater contains high concentrations of salts
and dissolved solids which, if discharged without adequate treatment,
could damage natural resources and endanger public health and safety.
Under the Department of Environmental Conservation's proposed
regulatory scheme, chemical bulk storage regulations and reporting
requirements would apply for discharges. This bill would adopt the
more stringent notification requirements that apply to petroleum
discharges and require the department to notify the general public
either through an existing or new database.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred
twentieth day after it shall have become a law. Effective

immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or
regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on it
effective date is authorized to be made on or before such date.

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  6891

                            I N  S E N A T E

                              April 4, 2012
                               ___________

Introduced  by Sens. GRISANTI, SALAND -- read twice and ordered printed,
  and when printed to be committed to  the  Committee  on  Environmental
  Conservation

AN  ACT to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to high
  volume hydraulic fracturing natural gas production discharge notifica-
  tions

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Article 23 of the environmental conservation law is amended
by adding a new title 29 to read as follows:
                                 TITLE 29
                    HIGH VOLUME HYDRAULIC FRACTURING
              NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION DISCHARGE NOTIFICATION
SECTION 23-2901. DEFINITIONS.
        23-2903. NOTIFICATION BY PERSONS RESPONSIBLE FOR DISCHARGE.
        23-2905. NOTIFICATION BY THE DEPARTMENT.
        23-2907. ENFORCEMENT OF TITLE; PENALTIES.
S 23-2901. DEFINITIONS.
  1.  "DISCHARGE" MEANS ANY INTENTIONAL OR UNINTENTIONAL ACTION OR OMIS-
SION RESULTING IN THE RELEASING, SPILLING,  LEAKING,  PUMPING,  POURING,
EMITTING,  EMPTYING  OR  DUMPING  OF ANY SUBSTANCE USED IN OR ASSOCIATED
WITH PROCESSES RELATED TO NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION INTO THE WATERS OF  THE
STATE OR ONTO LANDS, OR INTO WATERS OR LANDS OUTSIDE THE JURISDICTION OF
THE  STATE  WHEN  DAMAGE  MAY  RESULT  TO  THE  LANDS, WATERS OR NATURAL
RESOURCES WITHIN THE JURISDICTION OF  THE  STATE,  EXCEPTING  DISCHARGES
PURSUANT  TO  AND  IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF A VALID STATE OR
FEDERAL PERMIT.  FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION "DISCHARGE" SHALL  NOT
INCLUDE  FRESH WATER OR SOLID WASTE INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DRILL
CUTTINGS FROM OIL AND GAS PRODUCTION.
  2. "HIGH-VOLUME HYDRAULIC  FRACTURING"  OR  "(HVHF)"  MEANS  HYDRAULIC
FRACTURING  FOR  NATURAL GAS EXTRACTION USING GREATER THAN THREE HUNDRED
THOUSAND GALLONS OF WATER REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE  WELL  IS  VERTICAL,
DIRECTIONAL OR HORIZONTAL.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD13951-06-2

S. 6891                             2

  3.  "NATURAL  GAS PRODUCTION" OR "GAS PRODUCTION" MEANS ALL ACTIVITIES
ASSOCIATED WITH THE EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION OF NATURAL  GAS,  INCLUD-
ING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO (A) DEVELOPMENT OF NATURAL GAS WELLS; (B) ACTIV-
ITIES  ASSOCIATED  WITH DRILLING, STIMULATING, COMPLETING, CONSTRUCTING,
MAINTAINING, CONVERTING, ABANDONING, PLUGGING OR OPERATING A NATURAL GAS
WELL;  (C)  ACTIVITIES  ASSOCIATED WITH THE CONSTRUCTION OR OPERATION OF
FACILITIES FOR THE COLLECTION AND TRANSMISSION OF NATURAL GAS  FROM  GAS
WELLS TO CONSUMERS OF NATURAL GAS; AND (D) THE TRANSPORTATION OF MATERI-
ALS  ASSOCIATED  WITH  A NATURAL GAS WELL SITE OR NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION
WHETHER OR NOT SUCH GAS IS RE-INJECTED INTO THE SUBSURFACE OF THE EARTH,
FROM A GEOLOGICAL FORMATION AND THE TRANSPORTATION OF SUCH  NATURAL  GAS
TO ANOTHER LOCATION.
  4.  "PERSON"  MEANS PUBLIC OR PRIVATE CORPORATIONS, COMPANIES, ASSOCI-
ATIONS, SOCIETIES, FIRMS, PARTNERSHIPS, JOINT STOCK COMPANIES,  INDIVID-
UALS,  THE UNITED STATES, THE STATE OF NEW YORK AND ANY OF ITS POLITICAL
SUBDIVISIONS OR AGENTS.
S 23-2903. NOTIFICATION BY PERSONS RESPONSIBLE FOR DISCHARGE.
  ANY PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR CAUSING A DISCHARGE OF ANY  SUBSTANCE  USED
IN OR ASSOCIATED WITH PROCESSES RELATED TO THE PRODUCTION OF NATURAL GAS
WHERE  HIGH-VOLUME  HYDRAULIC  FRACTURING  IS UTILIZED SHALL IMMEDIATELY
NOTIFY THE DEPARTMENT PURSUANT TO RULES AND REGULATIONS  ESTABLISHED  BY
THE DEPARTMENT, BUT IN NO CASE LATER THAN TWO HOURS AFTER THE DISCHARGE.
FAILURE  TO  SO  NOTIFY  SHALL  MAKE  SUCH PERSON LIABLE PURSUANT TO THE
PENALTY PROVISIONS OF SECTION 23-2907 OF THIS TITLE.
S 23-2905. NOTIFICATION BY THE DEPARTMENT.
  WITHIN FORTY-EIGHT HOURS OF RECEIPT OF NOTIFICATION MADE  PURSUANT  TO
SECTION  23-2903  OF  THIS  TITLE  OF  A DISCHARGE, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL
PROVIDE NOTIFICATION OF SUCH DISCHARGE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC  THROUGH  A
NEW OR EXISTING DATABASE VIA ITS WEBSITE, WHICH SHALL BE UPDATED DAILY.
S 23-2907. ENFORCEMENT OF TITLE; PENALTIES.
  ANY  PERSON  WHO  VIOLATES  ANY OF THE PROVISIONS OF THIS TITLE OR ANY
RULE OR REGULATION PROMULGATED THEREUNDER OR WHO FAILS  TO  COMPLY  WITH
ANY  DUTY CREATED BY THIS TITLE SHALL BE LIABLE TO A PENALTY OF NOT MORE
THAN TWENTY-FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR EACH OFFENSE IN A COURT OF  COMPE-
TENT  JURISDICTION.  IF THE VIOLATION IS OF A CONTINUING NATURE EACH DAY
DURING WHICH IT CONTINUES SHALL CONSTITUTE AN ADDITIONAL,  SEPARATE  AND
DISTINCT OFFENSE.
  S 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
it  shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
tation of this act on its effective date is authorized to be made on  or
before such date.

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Find your Senator and share your views on important issues.

Do you support this bill?

Senate Bill S6891

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

Actions

co-Sponsors

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Details

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Do you support this bill?

Get Status Alerts for 2011-S6891

Senate Bill S6891

Share this bill

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Environmental Conservation Committee

Actions

co-Sponsors

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Details

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2011-S6891 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments