On April 12, 2013, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its proposed revisions to the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for the oil and natural gas sector (i.e., Quad O). The reconsidered Quad O standards are the result of several petitions for administrative reconsideration of, as well as judicial challenges to, the final rule published on August 16, 2012. EPA has agreed to reconsider portions of the rule in several phases, in exchange for abeyance of the litigation challenges pending in the D.C. Circuit. The April 12th proposal reflects the Agency’s first phase of that reconsideration, and focuses largely on new requirements and compliance deadlines applicable to storage tanks. Comments are due May 13, 2013, unless a public hearing is requested, in which case comments will be due May 28, 2013.
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Trademark Clearinghouse Goes Live
In anticipation of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) allowing private ownership of a significantly broadened scope of generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs), ICANN, on March 26, 2013, launched the Trademark Clearinghouse, which gives holders of verified trademark rights an opportunity to register their marks with the Trademark Clearinghouse before new gTLDs are allowed. Among others, nationally and regionally registered marks from any jurisdiction are eligible for registration with the Trademark Clearinghouse.
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Colorado Considering Significant Revisions to Emission Control, Permitting, and Reporting Requirements for the Oil and Gas Industry
At the February 28, 2013 Stakeholder Meeting, the Colorado Air Pollution Control Division (Division) revealed a suite of revisions it is considering to Air Quality Control Commission Regulation No. 7, in the form of significant new and expanded control options for Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), Greenhouse Gases (GHGs), and other hydrocarbon emissions from oil and gas facilities. The Division anticipates a formal rulemaking process to begin in November, 2013.
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EPA Proposes Significant Changes to its Startup, Shutdown, and Malfunction Air Rules
On February 22, 2013, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a sweeping proposal regarding the treatment of excess emissions in state rules from sources during periods of startup, shutdown, and malfunction (SSM). The proposal responds to a petition for rulemaking filed in 2011 by the Sierra Club, and promises to fundamentally alter the way most states, including Colorado and North Dakota, treat SSM events in their State Implementation Plans (SIP). Comments on EPA’s proposal are currently due March 25, 2013.
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COGCC Issues New Drilling Setback Rules
On Monday, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) gave final approval to new rules which expand the setbacks for oil and gas wells and production facilities and impose new notice, meeting, and mitigation requirements to better protect nearby homes and neighborhoods. The COGCC touts the new rules as “the strongest rules in the country for limiting the impact of drilling near residences and other occupied buildings.” These rules will go into effect on August 1, 2013.
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Strange Bedfellows – Bicycles and Hydraulic Fracturing
What do bikes and hydraulic fracturing have in common? Prior to this week, the answer was probably very little. On February 4, 2013, however, the Colorado Supreme Court unanimously issued an opinion striking down the City of Black Hawk’s ban prohibiting bicycle traffic on certain local streets. The Court found that even though Colorado law and Black Hawk’s home rule status granted the City some authority to regulate bicycle traffic, that authority is not without limits. The decision in Webb v. Black Hawk poses important implications for the ongoing efforts by certain Colorado municipalities to ban hydraulic fracturing, and it provides the oil and gas industry with new authority for contesting such efforts.