Following on the heels of its February guidance on fracking with
diesel fuels, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued
an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) under the Toxic
Substances Control Act (TSCA) regarding whether and how to require
manufacturers and processors of hydraulic fracturing chemicals to
report their composition and usage and to disclose health and
safety studies.
Signed May 9, 2014, by the EPA administrator, the ANPR initiates
a public participation process to help the agency craft its
response to a 2011 TSCA petition by environmentalists who called on
the agency to develop regulations requiring disclosure of fracking
chemicals.
The ANPR indicates that the agency is considering a variety of
approaches, including reliance on voluntary reporting mechanisms,
to address the petitioners' concerns. Complicating that effort,
however, is the agency's stated intention to coordinate its
efforts with the Bureau of Land Management's
