The project goals are to 1) reduce the costs of information exchange between the regulatory agencies and the petroleum and mining industries and 2) provide the baseline reference data that all stakeholders need to make informed decisions about environmental protection and mineral resource development. These goals are being met through the development of electronic commerce (e-commerce) applications that expand the uses of the Risk-Based Data Management System (RBDMS) and the Cost-Effective Regulatory Approach (CERA).
Ground Water Protection Research Foundation (GWPRF), Oklahoma City, OK
For more than 15 years, the GWPRF has managed the development of RBDMS, providing improvements, updates, and technical support to the increasing number of regulatory agencies that use it. Developing e-commerce applications that work with both RBDMS and non-RBDMS databases is the latest way in which the GWPRF seeks to improve the flow of data between industry operators and regulators. GWPRF holds annual training sessions where States receive training in the use of RBDMS and the RBDMS e-commerce applications in locations near one of the RBDMS State agencies to provide an opportunity to highlight the host agency’s information management processes.
With respect to the CERA aspects of this project, GWPRF has spearheaded an effort to seek and foster the development of new approaches that can benefit the petroleum industry and relevant government agencies. These include holding meetings to provide technology transfer, policy review, and discussion of emerging issues such as CO2 sequestration and produced-water management. Additionally, the GWPRF conducts peer reviews of UIC programs so that representatives of State agencies can share information and policy guidelines with their peers who administer similar regulatory programs. The GWPRF education and outreach effort supports the continued communication of the activities, practices, and policies of the UIC program to the public.
The RBDMS e-commerce applications encourage the production of more domestic oil and gas, help regulators increase environmental protection, and encourage the public to become knowledgeable in the issues surrounding energy production and water resource protection. A discussion of the tangible benefits the RBDMS e-commerce initiative offers agencies and industry operators follows:
The project eases information exchange between petroleum and mining operators and regulators through automation in the form of e-commerce applications. Examples include running ad hoc queries against regulatory databases over the Internet for research exploration and compliance tracking (data mining), filing and processing permit notices (ePermit) and production and injection reports (eReport) in both single-form and large-batch submittals, and tracking water quality data as it relates to fossil energy activities and prioritizing inspections according to environmental risk (RBDMS for Water).
Data mining is available in Utah, New Mexico, Colorado, Nebraska, Alaska, Montana, North Dakota, and New York. An updated version of data mining is available at http://www.nogcc.ne.gov/NOGCCOnlineGIS/. This incorporates GIS and “Google” style search technology with data access.
Electronic reporting of production and injection data is available in Utah, Nebraska, New York, Pennsylvania, and Montana and will soon be online in North Dakota.
Electronic permitting via single-submittal Web forms is now in development. Colorado, Alabama, Kentucky, and Alaska will pilot test this system. Batch transfer of files parsed against a WITSML-compliant XML schema will be pilot-tested in Colorado, California, and New Mexico.
RBDMS for Water has been installed in Ohio and Nebraska, with other agencies expressing interest.
Other cost-effective regulatory initiatives include the following:
The GWPC UIC Meeting was held in San Antonio, TX January 26-29, 2009. The UIC Conference provided an opportunity for representatives from a wide range of government entities, as well as industry and public representatives, to explore and better understand issues and regulations regarding underground injection.
RBDMS Classic is being installed in Illinois in conjunction with an EPA UIC database project. Montana is ready to submit data to the national UIC database. Nebraska, North Dakota, and Utah RBDMS systems are being mapped to the national UIC database. The RBDMS Entity Bond Module was installed in Oklahoma. The fourth iteration of RBDMS has been released in Mississippi while a needs assessment is being performed for RBDMS in Pennsylvania. RBDMS Annual Training was held on May 3-6, 2009 in Sarasota, FL.
(January 2010)
On September 13-16, 2009, in Salt Lake City, the Ground Water Protection Council and the US Department of Energy were joined by 26 water, power, and energy organizations as partners for the Water/Energy Sustainability Symposium: Water & Energy Policy in the 21st Century. The Symposium was dedicated to understanding water-energy inter-relationships and the science, technology, and policy that are needed for integrated water-energy planning and sustainability. There were 310 total participants at the Symposium with 124 presenters. The full agenda, abstracts as well as the majority of the power point presentations are located at the GWPC web site at http://www.gwpc.org/events/event-presentations
A Primer of Modern Shale Gas Development has been released. “Modern Shale Gas Development in the United States: A Primer.” [PDF-5.11MB] provides regulators, policy makers, and the public with an objective source of information on the technology advances and challenges that accompany deep shale gas development and describes the importance of shale gas in meeting the future energy needs of the United States. Protecting and conserving water resources is an important aspect of producing shale gas, and this effort was championed by the Ground Water Protection Council through a cooperative agreement with NETL.
A final version of the report entitled "State Oil and Natural Gas Regulations Designed to Protect Water Resources Report" prepared by the Ground Water Protection Council is published on http://www.gwpc.org [external site]. The report provides an assessment of state oil and gas regulations in order to provide insight into measures that have been designed to protect water resources. The report includes an addendum of regulations from 31 states that represent 99.9% of the national oil and natural gas production.
The project ended on September 11, 2009. A final report has been submitted.
$4,534,688
$2,297,542 (34% of total)
Other Government Organizations Involved: State oil and gas commissions, BLM, and EPA.
NETL – Sandra McSurdy (sandra.mcsurdy@netl.doe.gov or 412-386-4533)
GWPR - Mike Paque (mike@gwpc.org or 405-516-4972)
Final Project Report [PDF-3.13MB]
“Modern Shale Gas Development in the United States: A Primer.” [PDF-5.11MB]
Version 1.0 of the well lifecycle regulatory reporting schema:
http://www.rbdmsonline.org/XML/batch_regReporting.xsd [external site]
RBDMS Annual Reports. Published each year starting in 1999. http://www.gwpc.org [external site].
Publications
Belieu, Stan, Scott Kell, Paul Jehn, David Lowther, and Deborah Gillespie, “Using Risk-Based Analysis to Identify Inspection Priorities,” Society of Petroleum Engineers, SPE-106753-PP, paper presented at the 2007 SPE E&P Environmental and Safety Conference, Galveston, TX, March 2007.
Belieu, Stan, “Prioritizing Class II Inspections in Source Water Areas Using GIS and RBDMS,” presented at the GWPC Annual Forum. Miami, FL, September 30-October 5, 2006.
Belieu, S.D., P.J. Jehn, and M.F. Bohrer, SPE 94371, “Increased Access to Federal Lands Through Data Sharing,” March 2005.
Ground Water Protection Council, RBDMS eCommerce Initiative: Encouraging Domestic Oil and Gas Production While Helping to Protect the Environment, Annual Report, July 2006.
Ground Water Protection Council, The Effects of the RBDMS/e-Commerce Initiative on Domestic Oil and Gas Production and Water Resource Protection, Annual Report 2005, www.GWPC.org.
Ground Water Protection Council, “Technical Achievements of Five DOE Grant Initiatives,” 2005, www.GWPC.org.
Ground Water Protection Council, “E-Commerce Application Development and Support Needs: Practical Considerations and Challenges for Regulators and Industry,” white paper, April 2004, www.GWPC.org.
Jehn, Paul, Scott Kell, Tom Gillespie, and Dave Lowther, “Source Water Protection and the Energy Nexus,” International Petroleum Environmental Conference, San Antonio, TX, October 2006.
Jehn, Paul, Thom Kerr, Jim Milne, Bob Johnson, “Increasing Access to Federal Lands in Western States Through Data Sharing,” International Petroleum Environmental Conference, San Antonio, TX, October 2006.
Kell, Scott, Tom Gillespie, and Dave Lowther, “The Ohio Water Quality Module for Tracking Compliance Related Monitoring Data,” presented at the GWPC Annual Forum. Miami, FL, September 30-October 5, 2006.
Version 1.0 of the well lifecycle regulatory reporting schema: http://www.rbdmsonline.org/XML/batch_regReporting.xsd