Unconventional oil and natural gas play a key role in our nation's clean energy future. The U.S. has vast reserves of such resources that are commercially viable as a result of advances in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing technologies.  These technologies enable greater access to oil and natural gas in shale formations. Responsible development of America's shale gas resources offers important economic, energy security, and environmental benefits.

We work with states and other key stakeholders to help ensure that the economic prosperity from unconventional oil and natural gas extraction does not come at the expense of public health and the environment. We have played a lead role in convening stakeholders and conducting outreach to individual citizens, communities, tribes, state and federal partners, industry, trade associations and environmental organizations that have a strong interest in the agency's work and policies related to unconventional oil and natural gas extraction. 

Our focus and obligations under the law are to provide oversight, guidance and, where appropriate, rulemaking and enforcement, that achieve the best possible protections for human health and the air, water and land where Americans live, work and play.

On this page:

• Improving our scientific understanding of hydraulic fracturing

• Providing regulatory clarity and protections against known risks
  • Ensuring that hydraulic fracturing using diesel fuels is properly permitted
  • Ensuring the safe management of wastewater, stormwater, and other wastes
    • EPA study on managing produced water
    • Underground injection control (UIC) of waste disposal fluids from oil and natural gas wells (Class II wells)
    • Wastewater discharges to treatment facilities
    • Stormwater discharges from oil and natural gas operations or transmission facilities
    • Use of disposal ponds and impoundments
    • Recycling of wastewater

  • Addressing air quality impacts

• Working with partners

• Convening stakeholders

• Assuring compliance

Improving our Scientific Understanding of Hydraulic Fracturing

• April 2012 Memorandum of Agreement among the U.S. Departments of Energy and Interior and the U.S. EPA about Collaboration on Unconventional Oil and Gas Research (PDF)

• Our study of hydraulic fracturing and its potential impact on drinking water resources: We studied the relationship between hydraulic fracturing for oil and natural gas and drinking water resources. The study includes a review of published literature, analysis of existing data, scenario evaluation and modeling, laboratory studies, and case studies. We released a progress report in December 2012; a final draft assessment report for peer review and comment in June 2015; and the final report in December 2016.  Our report concludes that hydraulic fracturing activities can impact drinking water resources under some circumstances and identifies factors that influence these impacts.  Learn more:
  • Final assessment 
  • Study home page: epa.gov/hfstudy
  • Process of unconventional natural gas production (hydraulic fracturing and shale gas extraction)

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Providing Regulatory Clarity and Protections against Known Risks

Ensuring that hydraulic fracturing using diesel fuels is properly permitted

A core element of the Safe Drinking Water Act's (SDWA) Underground Injection Control (UIC) program is setting requirements for proper well siting, construction, and operation to minimize risks to underground sources of drinking water. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 excluded hydraulic fracturing, except when diesel fuels are used, for oil, natural gas or geothermal production from regulation under the UIC program. This statutory language caused regulators and the regulated community alike to raise questions about the applicability of permitting practices.

We have developed revised UIC Class II permitting guidance specific to oil and natural gas hydraulic fracturing activities using diesel fuels.  Although developed specifically for hydraulic fracturing where diesel fuels are used, many of the guidance’s recommended practices are consistent with best practices for hydraulic fracturing in general, including those found in state regulations and model guidelines for hydraulic fracturing developed by industry and stakeholders.  Thus, states and tribes responsible for issuing permits and/or updating regulations for hydraulic fracturing will find the recommendations useful in improving the protection of underground sources of drinking water and public health wherever hydraulic fracturing occurs.

• Read the guidance, interpretive memo and Federal Register notice.
• The EPA and states share primary responsibility ("primacy") for implementing the UIC program. Learn about the primacy status of each state.

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Ensuring the safe management of wastewater, stormwater, and other wastes

As the number of shale gas wells in the U.S. increases, so too does the volume of shale gas wastewater that requires disposal. Wastewater associated with shale gas extraction can contain high levels of salt content also called total dissolved solidstotal dissolved solidsThe quantity of dissolved material in a given volume of water. or TDS. The wastewater can also contain various organic chemicals, inorganic chemicals, metals, and naturally occurring radioactive materials (also referred to as technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material or TENORM). In partnership with states,we are examining the different management methods employed by industry to ensure that there are regulatory and permitting frameworks in place to provide safe and legal options for disposal of flowback and produced water. These options include:

EPA Study on Managing Produced Water

The study will consider available approaches to manage wastewater from both conventional and unconventional oil and gas extraction at onshore facilities, and will address questions such as:

• how existing federal approaches to produced water management under the CWA can interact more effectively with state regulations, requirements or policy needs, and
• whether potential federal regulations that may allow for broader discharge of treated produced water to surface waters are supported.
• Learn more about the study.

Underground injection of waste fluids from oil and natural gas wells (Class II wells)

In many regions of the U.S., underground injection is the most common method of managing fluids or other substances from shale gas extraction operations. Management of flowback and produced water via underground injection is regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act's Underground Injection Control (UIC) program.

• Class II oil and natural gas-related injection wells
• UIC regulations

Wastewater discharges to treatment facilities

The Clean Water Act (CWA) effluent guidelines program sets national standards for industrial wastewater discharges to surface waters and municipal sewage treatment plants based on the performance of treatment and control technologies. Effluent guidelines for on-shore oil and natural gas extraction facilities prohibit the discharge of pollutants into surface waters, except for wastewater that is of good enough quality for use in agricultural and wildlife propagation for those onshore facilities located in the continental United States and west of the 98th meridian. 

Final rule: On June 28, 2016, we promulgated pretreatment standards for the Oil and Gas Extraction Category (40 CFR Part 435). The regulations prohibit discharges of wastewater pollutants from onshore unconventional oil and natural gas (UOG) extraction facilities to POTWs.

Related study of private wastewater treatment facilities:  We are conducting a study of private wastewater treatment facilities (also known as centralized waste treatment, or CWT, facilities) accepting oil and natural gas extraction wastewater. We are collecting data and information related to the extent to which CWT facilities accept such wastewater, available treatment technologies (and their associated costs), discharge characteristics, financial characteristics of CWT facilities, the environmental impacts of discharges from CWT facilities, and other relevant information.

• Learn more about effluent guidelines for unconventional extraction in the oil and natural gas industry

Stormwater discharges from oil and natural gas operations or transmission facilities

Under the CWA, oil and natural gas exploration, production, processing, or treatment operations or transmission facilities, including associated construction activities, are not required to obtain National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit coverage for stormwater discharges unless there is a reportable quantity spill or the discharge causes or contributes to a water quality violation.

• Regulation of stormwater discharges from oil and natural gas construction activities

Use of surface impoundments (pits or ponds) for storage or disposal

In some cases, operators use surface storage tanks and pits to temporarily store hydraulic fracturing fluids for re-use or until arrangements are made for disposal.  In addition, other wastes are generated during the well drilling, stimulation, and production stages. States, tribes, and some local governments have primary responsibility for adopting and implementing programs to ensure proper management of these wastes.

• Regulation of crude oil and natural gas waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
  • Proper Management of Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Waste (main page on RCRA regulation of wastes from hydraulic fracturing processes)
    • Review of State Oil and Natural Gas Exploration, Development, and Production (E&P) Solid Waste Management Regulations (April 2014)
    • Compilation of Publicly Available Sources of Voluntary Management Practices for Oil and Gas Exploration and Production (E&P) Wastes as They Address Pits, Tanks, and Land Application (April 2014)

Recycling of wastewater

Some drilling operators elect to re-use a portion of the wastewater to replace and/or supplement fresh water in formulating fracturing fluid for a future well or re-fracturing the same well. Re-use of shale gas wastewater is, in part, dependent on the levels of pollutants in the wastewater and the proximity of other fracturing sites that might re-use the wastewater. This practice has the potential to reduce discharges to treatment facilities or surface waters, minimize underground injection of wastewater and conserve water resources.

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Addressing air quality impacts

There have been well-documented air quality impacts in areas with active natural gas development, with increases in emissions of methane, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). The EPA, the Department of the Interior, other federal agencies and states are working to better characterize and reduce these air emissions and their associated impacts.

Through the Natural Gas STAR program, the EPA and partner companies have identified technologies and practices that can cost-effectively reduce methane emissions from the oil and natural gas sector in the U.S. and abroad.

Through the Clean Construction USA program, we are promoting newer, more efficient technology and cleaner fuels to innovate the ways in which hydraulic fracturing equipment and vehicles reduce emissions. We also administer Clean Air Act regulations for oil and natural gas production, including regulations on reporting greenhouse gas emissions.

• Controlling Air Pollution from the Oil and Natural Gas Industry home page
  • Regulatory actions
• Natural Gas STAR Program
  • Recommended Technologies to Reduce Methane Emissions
  • Global Methane Initiative Exit
• Clean Construction USA program
• Clean Air Act Standards and Guidelines for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry
• Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program
  • Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program and the Oil and Gas Industry

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Working with Partners

Memorandum of Understanding between the the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission and EPA

1. Continue long-term improvement in communication between the states and EPA.
2. Continue a high-level IOGCC/EPA relationship that is intended to foster environmental protection based on mutual understanding of each other's missions, responsibilities, and authorities.
3. Address, through ad hoc, issue-oriented working subgroups, issues that may result from concurrent jurisdiction between the states and EPA.
4. Identify issues of concern between the states and EPA that can be addressed in the short and long term.
5. Identify and implement mutually beneficial joint activities.

• View the Memorandum of Understanding
• Read the press release

Memorandum of Understanding between the State Review of Oil and Natural Gas Environmental Regulations (STRONGER) and EPA

• affirm EPA’s commitment to meaningful participation in STRONGER’s efforts to develop guidelines for state oil and natural gas environmental regulatory programs, conduct reviews of such programs and publish reports of those reviews, and
• improve communication, coordination and collaboration between EPA and STRONGER on responsible oil and natural gas exploration and development activities.

• View the Memorandum of Understanding
• Read the press release

Memorandum of Understanding between the State of New Mexico and EPA

In July 2018, EPA and the State of New Mexico entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to clarify the existing regulatory and permitting frameworks related to the way produced water from oil and gas extraction activities can be reused, recycled, and renewed for other purposes.

Draft White Paper on Oil and Natural Gas Governance of Produced Water 

As described in the MOU, EPA and New Mexico have developed a draft white paper on the governance of produced water in New Mexico. This draft white paper, Oil and Natural Gas Produced Water Governance in the State of New Mexico,was available for review and public input for 30 days, through the close of business, Monday, December 10, 2018. Stakeholders and interested members of the public provided input to the EPA and the State of New Mexico by emailing renewablewater@state.nm.us.

• View:
  • the Memorandum of Understanding
  • draft white paper
  • questions and answers about the draft white paper, and
  • the public input.

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Convening Stakeholders

We occasionally partner with, or convene, oil and natural gas stakeholders to increase opportunities for environmental improvements.

• Our Smart Sectors program partners with sectors that represent the engine of the American economy in order to explore significant opportunities for environmental improvement.  Currently, we are partnering with 14 sectors, including oil and gas.  Additional sectors may be added over time. 

• In April 2017, various industry associations expressed their concerns to us about our compliance assurance activities.  View the letters and memos to us, and our July 2017 responses.  In response to these concerns, former Administrator Pruitt convened a roundtable in February 2018 in cooperation with the Environmental Council of States (ECOS) and the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC).  View the press release, agenda, meeting highlights, case studies, and participant list.

• In August 2019, we renewed our commitment to collaborate with the IOGCC through the EPA-IOGCC Task Force. First established in 2002, the task force is comprised of EPA’s senior leaders and state oil and gas leadership, and is a mechanism for better communication and collaboration between the federal government and the states. Together, EPA and IOGCC leadership will continue to promote protection of human health and the environment, while:
  • recognizing each other’s missions, responsibilities and authorities,
  • increasing efficiencies, and
  • facilitating the exchange of information and expertise. 

Both EPA and certain IOGCC member regulators maintain authority and responsibility over produced water, making federal and state collaboration on the management and regulation of produced water essential. 

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Assuring Compliance

We target compliance and enforcement activities to ensure compliance with laws and regulations, with an emphasis on correcting violations with significant potential harm to human health and the environment. In addition to self-directed investigations, we receive thousands of leads and incident reports relating to oil and natural gas activities that could impact human health and air or water quality. We work with state and local governments to respond to incidents, encourage diligent accident prevention, and provide effective and prompt responses when emergencies occur.  Our offices around the nation ("Regions" or "Regional offices") provide guidance and grants to state regulators, perform inspections, conduct enforcement actions, and issue permits and information request letters, in order to ensure that existing federal laws are consistently and effectively implemented.

In March 2019, EPA announced a voluntary disclosure program for new owners of upstream oil and natural gas exploration and facilities. The program was developed to encourage new owners of these facilities to participate because it provided regulatory certainty and clearly defined civil penalty mitigation beyond what was offered by the EPA’s existing self-disclosure policies. Learn more about EPA's Audit Policy. In December 2019, EPA temporarily expanded its voluntary self-audit and disclosure program for upstream oil and natural gas facilities by giving existing owners the opportunity to find, correct, and self-disclose Clean Air Act violations. Learn more about the Existing Owner Audit Program for oil and natural gas production facilities.

The EPA's compliance assistance web portal for owners and operators of crude oil and natural gas extraction operations provides easily accessible information to help companies comply with federal and state environmental regulations. View the Environmental Compliance Information for Energy Extraction Portal at www.eciee.org.

• New Owner Clean Air Act Audit Program for Oil and Natural Gas Exploration and Production Facilities
• National Enforcement Initiative: Ensuring energy extraction activities comply with environmental laws
• The October 2000 Compliance Assistance Sector Notebook: Profile of the Oil and Gas Extraction Industry can be found in the EPA archive by searching for "oil gas sector notebook" Search EPA Archive

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