Last month, the California legislature revived a bill that was shut down last year that would require the disclosure of fracking chemicals.  In a compromise with industry, the revived bill (AB 591) includes trade secret protection.  Current law requires the owner or operator of a well to file a history of the work performed within 60 days of the end of ceasing operation.   The new bill requires that history to include a list of the chemicals used that will be made publicly available, subject to the trade secret exceptions now in the bill.

Last week, California’s Department of Conservation released a road map outlining a plan to develop regulations governing fracking procedures.  This announcement follows the Department of Conservation’s request at the end of March for operators to report their fracking operations to a disclosure registry, Frac Focus.  The Department specifically requested information relating to the location and depth of wells and the chemicals used.

Co-Authored by Michael Mills and Robin Seifried.