This summer, the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Land Management issued proposed rules relating to disclosure of the content of frac fluids and handling of frac fluids used in wells drilled on puclic lands managed by the BLM. Last week a group of Congressmen led by Congressman Edward J. Markey,…
The 5th Circuit affirmed a judgment today against Chesapeake Exploration for $19,951,004 in favor of Peak Energy Corporation, for breach of a contract to purchase oil and gas leases in the Haynesville Shale area of Harrison County, Texas. Coe v. Chesapeake Exploration, No. 11-41003. The Court’s summary of the case:…
The Texas Supreme Court issued two important condemnation cases on the last day of its term, both reversing judgments after jury trials in condemnation suits. In City of Austin v. Harry M. Whittington, the court resolved the Whittington’s ten-year battle with the City over condemnation of a city block adjacent to…
The Texas Railroad Commission has been issuing new rules and proposed rules affecting oil and gas exploration activities that landowners should know about. New Penalty Guidelines The RRC proposed new rules earlier this year establishing guidelines for penalties for violations of RRC rules. This month, the RRC adopted those proposed…
A new documentary by Scott Tinker and Harry Lynch is now being rolled out at select screenings. http://www.switchenergyproject.com/aboutfilm.php#about Dr. Tinker was Director of the Bureau of Economic Geology, a joint organization of the University of Texas and the State of Texas, and a professor at UT’s Jackson School of Geology, as well…
I recently spoke at a Continuing Legal Education Program for Texas real estate attorneys about regulation of hydraulic fracturing. My job was to give a short overview of the development of fracing and horizontal drilling in the US and its impact on production and the economy. Here are some slides…
Last year, researchers at Duke University published a controversial study of groundwater in Pennsylvania showing that water wells in close proximity to Marcellus Shale gas wells had higher concentrations of natural gas in the water than more-distant water wells in the same aquifer. (See my prior post here.) The same…
A new industry has sprung up in the metropolis of Carrizo Springs, Texas, in the heart of the Eagle Ford Shale Play: lodging for oil field workers — and lodging in style. In an attempt to keep workers in the field, companies are putting up their workers in plush hotel-like…
Here are some interesting articles I have found: On Texas’ drought, from the PBS News Hour: http://www.texastribune.org/texas-environmental-news/environmental-problems-and-policies/coping-climate-change-texas-drought/ On Texas’ drought, from Texas Tribune: http://www.texastribune.org/texas-environmental-news/environmental-problems-and-policies/ “The Arithmentic of Shale Gas,” from Forbes’ Christopher Helman: http://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2012/06/22/the-arithmetic-of-shale-gas/ In this article, Helman reviews a paper published by a group of Yale economis…
The fall of Aubrey McClendon, CEO of Chesapeake Energy, has been meteoric. He was forced to step down as Chairman of its board, and yesterday he was replaced as board chair by Archie Dunham, the 73-year-old former CEO of Conoco. Aubrey’s fall from grace started only a few months ago with…