A federal judge in Wyoming on Tuesday tossed out Obama administration rules on fracking.
District Judge Scott Skavdahl ruled that the Bureau of Land Management lacked authority to issue the regulations when it did so, in March 2015.
Skavdahl, an Obama-appointee nominated to the bench in 2011, said BLM had narrow jurisdiction when regulating energy production.
“Congress delegated regulatory authority for environmental protection of underground water sources to the Environmental Protection Agency, not the BLM,” he concluded.
Administration lawyers had argued that Congress granted BLM authority to take action on federal lands “for the protection of the interests of the United States…and for the safeguarding of the public welfare.”
Skavdahl, however, said this was intended to govern “specific lease provisions” regarding workplace safety, mineral pricing, and for the “prevention of undue waste.”
“Read in context, the language quoted by the BLM does not reflect a grant to the BLM of broad authority to regulate for the protection of the environment,” he said.
The Department of the Interior has not yet appealed the decision.
“It’s unfortunate that implementation of the rule continues to be delayed because it prevents regulators from using 21st century standards to ensure that oil and gas operations are conducted safely and responsibly on public and tribal lands,” a spokeswoman told The Hill.
Congressional Republicans and energy lobbyists cheered the move. The Independent Petroleum Association of America, a plaintiff in the case, said it was “pleased.”
“Today’s decision demonstrates BLM’s efforts are not needed and that states are–and have for over 60 years been–in the best position to safely regulate hydraulic fracturing,” association spokesman Neal Kirby said.
House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) called fracking “one of the keys that has unlocked our nation’s energy resurgence in oil and natural gas.”
According to BLM, energy extraction on federal lands accounts for 11 percent of the US natural gas supply and five percent of its oil supply.
If the courts uphold it, the bureau’s rule will force companies to publicly disclose chemicals used on public lands in the fracking process. It would also tighten regulations on water safety and “well-bore integrity.”
