The Future of Hydraulic Fracturing on Federally Managed Lands

America has vaulted to the forefront of production of oil and gas, due to the technological combination of hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") and horizontal drilling. This technology has enabled the United States to tap into its vast reserves of shale oil and gas, which in 2014 drove the United States to produce the most crude oil annually since 1986. Fracking has been employed in the oil and gas industry since 1947, and is a "well stimulation technique" in which an "artificial fracture" is created and then "fluid [and propping agents] [are] pumped into the production casing, through the perforations (or open hole), and into the targeted formation at pressures high enough to cause the rock within the targeted formation to fracture." Citing public concern about whether fracking can contaminate underground water sources, whether there is adequate management of well, and whether chemicals used for fracking should be disclosed, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) undertook a rulemaking process to address fracking on federal lands. The final rule was announced on March 20, 2015, and was to become effective on June 24, 2015. Four states, Colorado, North Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming, energy trade associations, and two tribes, the Southern Utes and the Ute Tribe of Uintah and Ouray County, have filed lawsuits challenging the BLM's final rule on hydraulic fracturing.