Hydraulic fracturing: the
Taranaki Regional Council
perspective
Energy Law Association
presentation 15 May 2013
Gary Bedford
Director-Environment Quality
Taranaki Regional Council
Context-history and present
1840s Documented usage of oil by hapu
1860 First ever oil well in British Empire
1929 Todd involvement begins (STOS, Todd Energy)
1950s Kapuni exploration
1962 Kapuni commercially producing well
1970s Maui field
1989 Hydraulic fracturing
Multiple fields (17+), on-shore and off-shore
Over 650 wells- 170 are off-shore
12 production stations
Around 80 HF to date
Ramping up: 5 on-shore, 3 off-shore rigs
‘sunset industry’?’boom and bust’? Really??
Context- economy
National: $2 billion exports - fourth largest national
sector (ahead of tourism, wine, forestry)
~$1 billion tax and royalties to Govt
Taranaki: highest ratio of export-related business,
fastest GDP growth, 3rd fastest growth in
employment and numbers of businesses, of all
regions in NZ
$2.5 billion annually to Taranaki’s GDP
Direct employment: 3,600 in Taranaki; plus supply
chain 5,100
Port Taranaki : a dedicated hydrocarbons export
terminal, and service centre for off-shore
facilities;
3rd busiest port in NZ by volume and about to
become 2nd busiest
Context- environmental performance
of oil and gas sector
• About 13% of consented and monitored activities
• But only 2% of all incidents and 6% of prosecutions
• 91-95 % ‘good’ compliance rating each year even with
multiple inspections, sampling , bio surveys etc and a
‘1-strike’ rule on compliance categorisation
• Sector with the highest environmental performance
we’ve identified
So oil and gas in Taranaki is an industry
that is mature, commonplace, wellestablished, vital for economy, has an
excellent environmental record, and offers
significant community contributionswhy the new controversy? What’s recently
changed?
• Some thoughts in hand-out
Regulation of the oil and gas sector
NZPAMD
licence to prospect and extract
DoL/MBIE High Hazards/
(? Post Dec 2012)
Regs-Health and safety case
EPA
permitting off-shore- >12 nm
MoC
RMA NCPS, regs (territorial waters- < 12 nm)
MBIE (DoL)
HSNO- storage, use, and disposal of hazsubs
TAs
RMA consent: To occupy- land use- noise,
visual amenity, lighting, traffic, zoning
Regional
RMA consents: Abstraction (aquifers/target
Councils
formation); discharge stormwater; discharge
to air;
Discharge to formation (fracturing);
Offsite waste management- deep well
injection (liquids); land farming /wastes reutilisation (solids)
Consent to fracture
• Required since mid 2011, for certainty of legality under
RMA and for accountability
(injection of water+ inert proppants+ dilute chemicals into an
geologically sealed and isolated formation 3 km underground
for a few hours before removal, flushing)
• Typically non-notified but considered on merits. Who are
‘affected’ (not ‘interested’ ) parties?
• Environmental monitoring plan- extensive, comprehensive
• Well integrity verification
• Pre and post frac reports-intervals, volumes, modelling,
geology, faultlines, pressures, fluid composition, disposal,
record of performance, etc
• Notifications
Easy to ‘lift the bar’- best practice, emerging issues
Can’t have consents without monitoring
Conditions and compliance
Extensive science informing conditions and monitoring
(nb fracturing in Taranaki is NOT the same as USA etc)• Well and formation integrity and risk assessment
• Best overseas regulatory practice for fracturing, land
farming
• Seismic risk- frequency or severity
• Flare emissions/ other air emissions
• Radioactivity- NORMS, tracers
• Ecotoxicity to soil, water biota
• Offsite health risk evaluation
Monitoring covers multiple inspections, site layout and
management , shallow groundwater, operational data and
performance records incl integrity, fluids sampling, and
appropriate offsite biomonitoring and physicochem
analysis, at every site
The answer to your prayers?
DRAFT
Guide to regulating oil and gas
exploration and development
activities under the Resource
Management Act
(Taranaki Regional Council 2013)a guide for other councils and
regulators