In a process that took nearly three years to complete, on Monday, November 9, the Kern County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a significant change to its oil and gas regulations. The change affects Title 19 of the Kern County Zoning Ordinance and provides a streamline permitting process for oil and gas operations. The change … Continue Reading
New Third Edition Reflects July 1 Permanent Regulations of Hydraulic Fracturing We have prepared an update to the firm’s SB 4 Compliance Handbook to aid operators in their efforts to comply with SB 4 and its new permitting scheme. Senate Bill 4 (“SB 4”) regulates well stimulation treatments in California, including hydraulic fracturing and acid … Continue Reading
On Thursday, Feb. 19, the Center for Biological Diversity (“CBD”) filed suit against the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (“BOEM”), the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (“BSEE”), and the Department of the Interior (“DOI”) in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. (CBD v. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management et al., … Continue Reading
On December 30, 2014, the California Office of Administrative Law (“OAL”) approved the Final Permanent Well Stimulation Treatment Regulations (“Permanent Regulations”). The regulations go into effect on July 1, 2015, and the Interim Regulations, which were operative all of last year, will remain the governing law in the meantime. By finalizing the Permanent Regulations, California … Continue Reading
See the following post in our Mineral Law Blog to learn more about the forecasted shortage of construction aggregate resources (sand, gravel and crushed stone) in California. This shortage may lead to higher costs and greater environmental impacts for development projects in California, including projects such as the California High-Speed Rail Project.… Continue Reading
After intense lobbying from Central Valley legislators and the oil and gas exploration and production industry, on November 3, 2011, Governor Jerry Brown removed Elena Miller as Supervisor of the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) within the Department of Conservation. Appointed in 2009, Miller’s tenure as the DOGGR Supervisor has been plagued … Continue Reading
Our team of renewable energy attorneys recently published a detailed Case Study of a complex, multi-phase, 600 MW wind project. This hypothetical illustration provides an overview of the myriad issues, both legal and practical, that a wind energy project developer faces in California. The Case Study is a useful resource for all potential wind developers … Continue Reading
