Hydraulic fracturing fluids are made up of more than 99.5 percent water and sand. A small portion of these fluids are made up of common, every day additives, which are highly diluted. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) requires natural gas producers to disclose the entire universe of these additives on a well-by-well basis. On its website, DEP provides detailed information: click here and here.

Further, Act 13 — a recently enacted natural gas regulatory law — heightens the disclosure of fracturing additives. This, too, from DEP:

By signing Act 13 into law, Governor Corbett enacted one of the most aggressive and transparent hydraulic fracturing disclosure laws in the country. The law is based in large part on the success of similar disclosure requirements enacted by the state of Colorado. Colorado’s requirements, upon which much of this Act’s disclosure requirements were based, were hailed by progressive industry representatives, environmental organizations and many other groups as a model for other states.

Unconventional well operators must complete a chemical disclosure registry form for publication on FracFocus.org in addition to the reporting required to be submitted to the department. The use of FracFocus.org was recommended and supported by a Department of Energy advisory panel’s report on hydraulic fracturing.

Texas A&M released a free new web training program addressing how to properly register and submit hydraulic fracturing chemical data to www.FracFocus.org.

Because the registry must be used for all hydraulic fracturing of unconventional wells performed on or after April 16, 2012, the Department expects all operators to be registered with FracFocus.org and be prepared to begin using the registry. Within 60 days of the conclusion of hydraulic fracturing, operators must complete and post the chemical registry disclosure form on the registry.

Act 13 provides for immediate, verbal communication of any proprietary information to emergency responders to ensure the necessary care or treatment is delivered to anyone who may have been affected. The Act states that nothing shall prevent the department, a public health official, an emergency manager or a responder to a spill, release or complaint from a person who may have been aggrieved by the spill or release from obtaining information needed upon written request. (Please see §3222.1 of the Act)

Additionally, all MSC member companies have been participating with FracFocus – disclosing fracturing additives online on a well-by-well basis – since the beginning of 2012, in an effort to enhance operational transparency, a core tenet of our Guiding Principles.

And this from FracFocus.org: Given today’s technology, chemicals must be used in hydraulic fracturing to ensure the producing formation is effectively treated. The chart shown below depicts generic hydraulic fracturing chemical usage including the types of chemicals, their uses in the process and the consequences of not using them.

(Source: FracFocus.org)