SB0451sam002 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Dan Kotowski

Filed: 4/27/2015

09900SB0451sam002 LRB099 03206 MGM 34677 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 451

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 451 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act is amended by adding Section 1-99.5 as follows:

(225 ILCS 732/1-99.5 new)

Sec. 1-99.5. The Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force.

(a) The Department shall, prior to final approval of any and all new or modified permits for high volume horizontal fracturing wells and operations, horizontal drilled wells with fracturing operations, Class II injection disposal wells, and waste management plans for disposal of oil drilling waste, liquid natural gas waste, or natural gas drilling waste from high volume horizontal fracturing wells and operations, and horizontal drilled wells with fracturing operations, request the approval of those permits, permit modifications, and plans from the Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force, created in subsection (e) of this Section, if the wells and operations or disposal sites are located within any and all counties that wholly or partially contain any part of the New Madrid seismic zone, the Wabash Valley seismic zone, the Ste. Genevieve seismic zone, the Cottage Grove fault system, the Rough Creek-Shawneetown fault system, the magmatic system of Hicks Dome, the Illinois-Kentucky Fluorspar District, or the NNW-trending La Salle, Du Quoin, and Clay City fold systems. The requirement of obtaining approval of permits, permit modifications, or waste management plans from the Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force is in addition to all requirements mandated by this Act.

(b) Public notice shall be given no later than 5 days after a request by the Department of an approval from the Task Force, via announcement on the Illinois Emergency Management Agency website in a manner that is accessible and searchable by the public, including the permits, permit modifications, or waste management plans, their locations, the operators and companies involved, and as much detail about the permits, permit modifications, or waste management plans as is available. The public announcement shall initiate a public comment period that shall last for 60 days allowing for public comments, both electronically and written. The Task Force shall host any public hearings that it deems necessary and take all public comments under advisement during their process of deliberation. The public shall be able to, through the website, request a public hearing on the approval, which shall be granted if requested by: (i) any stake holder with real property, water, or business interests within the county, or immediate adjacent counties, for which the permit, modification, or disposal plan approval has been requested, (ii) a community, religious, or environmental organization with 4 or more members who live within the county or immediate adjacent counties for which the permit, modification, or disposal plan approval has been requested, or (iii) 4 or more members of the general public who live within the county or immediate adjacent counties for which the permit, modification, or disposal approval has been requested. The public hearing, if granted, shall be scheduled by the Task Force within 60 days of the due date of the approval or denial, with public notice of at least 14 days, within the county for which the permit, modification, or disposal plan approval has been requested. The public hearing shall be attended by at least 3 members of the Task Force and documented on video, which shall be archived within 3 days on the Illinois Emergency Management Agency website and be accessible to the public.

(c) The approval or denial of any permits, modifications, or disposal plans by the Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force shall:

(1) be published no later than 120 days after receipt of the request from the Department;

(2) be reflective of a 50% plus one vote of the Task Force and signed by a majority of the members of the Task Force, or their designee;

(3) clearly state the reasons for the decision and any dissenting votes and their reasons;

(4) be archived as a public document, along with all public comments and testimony at public hearings in a searchable database that is accessible to the public on the website of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency;

(5) be posted within 48 hours on the websites of the Department and the Illinois Emergency Management Agency;

(6) upon request by the Department, initiate a public process;

(7) allow an appeal process with the Task Force by any person described in subsection (b), either in writing or electronically, within 30 days after the Task Force publishes its approval or denial; and

(8) be decided only if a quorum of Task Force members are in attendance at the meeting where the vote is taken, either in person, by phone, or electronic conferencing.

The Task Force shall address all significant issues brought up in the appeal process in writing, individually, and publicly on its website within 30 days after the close of the appeal comment period. The Task Force may revoke its approval or denial of the permits, modifications, or disposal plans based on evidence brought forth during the appeal process if done within 60 days of the initial approval or denial, with a 50% plus one vote of the members of the Task Force. The Task Force shall publish its decision to revoke an approval or denial and the reasons for its decision along with any dissenting votes and its reasons within 60 days after the initial approval or denial.

(d) The Department shall work with the Illinois State Geological Survey to perform probability mapping of all active seismic zones in this State listed in subsection (a). Using existing data and resources at the Illinois State Geological Survey and the United States Geological Survey, along with data on faults in brittle rock, the Illinois State Geological Survey shall outline, for each county, the areas of the active faults listed in subsection (a) that carry a high, medium, and low probability of induced seismicity from high volume horizontal fracturing wells and operations, horizontal drilled wells with fracturing operations, Class II injection disposal wells, and waste disposal of oil drilling waste, liquid natural gas waste, or natural gas drilling waste from high volume horizontal fracturing wells and operations, and horizontal drilled wells with fracturing operations. This map shall be finalized no later than January 1, 2017 and shall be publicly available on the websites of the Department, the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, and the Illinois State Geological Survey within one week of its completion.

(e) The Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force is hereby created. The Task Force shall have the following members:

(1) the Director, or his or her representative, from each of the following State agencies: the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Public Health, the Illinois State Water Survey, the Illinois Pollution Control Board, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Illinois State Geological Survey, and the Department of Insurance;

(2) one independent expert in risk assessment in earthquake zones and its impact on insurance rates and ratings appointed by the Director of Insurance;

(3) one university-based independent seismologist with expertise in induced seismicity appointed by the Director of the Illinois State Geological Survey; and

(4) one member appointed by the Attorney General with expertise in property and insurance law.

(f) The chairperson of the Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force shall be the Director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency or his or her representative. The members shall be appointed no later than 30 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly.

The Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force shall:

(1) Meet as often as necessary, but at least once a month, either in person or via conference call or electronic conferencing capabilities, beginning no later than 60 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 99th General Assembly. All meetings shall:

(A) be conducted as public meetings with adequate public notice, and allow for the public to submit comments and documents at the meetings and electronically;

(B) be archived on the website of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency in a searchable manner for the public; and

(C) convene in the areas of Illinois with the active seismic zones listed in subsection (a) at least 3 times a year.

(2) Serve without pay, if the member is employed by the State, or, if the member is not employed by the State, paid a per diem set by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, for time spent working on the Task Force.

(3) Investigate any and all adverse effects or risks from significant naturally-occurring earthquakes and induced seismicity by high volume horizontal fracturing wells and operations, horizontal drilling with fracturing operations, and the disposal of oil, liquid natural gas, and natural gas waste in Class II injection wells, on oil and natural gas wells, operations, and infrastructure, in the active seismic zones listed in subsection (a).

(4) Investigate the risks and probabilities of induced seismicity from Class II injection well disposal of oil and natural gas waste if the wells are located within any and all counties that wholly or partially contain any part of the active seismic zones listed in subsection (a).

(5) Examine the probability of induced seismicity in Illinois active seismic zones and any and all adverse effects or risks of induced seismicity on:

(A) water resources, water wells, aquifers, dams, canals, any possible contamination, and the environment, including possible soil and air contamination;

(B) public health effects, including mental health adverse effects of repeated induced seismic events;

(C) property, including livestock and domesticated animals, wells, residences, structures, and farming buildings;

(D) tourism and recreational activities in the active seismic zones of this State;

(E) risk management issues, including emergency management plans;

(F) risk management issues, including liability, bonding, and insurance requirements for operators, well owners, land owners, mineral rights owners, lessors, and subcontractors and the effects on insurance rates and ratings, mortgages, small businesses and their insurance and mortgage rates and availability;

(G) the mechanical integrity of oil, liquid natural gas, and natural gas wells, Class II injection wells, the oil, liquid natural gas, and natural gas industry infrastructure, including pipelines, and any possible contamination from a breach of mechanical integrity of these structures;

(H) effects of potential spillage, leakage, fires, or blowouts of the oil, liquid natural gas, and natural gas wells, fracturing waste and waste water containment structures, including open pits, oil, liquid natural gas, and natural gas processing infrastructure, and transportation infrastructure, including pipelines, secondary to possible induced seismicity, and significant naturally occurring seismic events;

(I) effects of potential spillage, leakage, fires, or blowouts of chemicals, proppants, and byproducts, and their containment, processing, and transportation infrastructure, secondary to possible induced seismicity, and significant naturally occurring seismic events;

(J) the safety of any nuclear power plants, uranium processing plants, or low-level radioactive waste storage sites in this State and the surrounding states that may be impacted by induced seismicity triggered within the active seismic zones in this State;

(K) the risks of inducing a significant earthquake greater than magnitude 6, either immediately or in the future, on all of the issues delineated in this Section, and the risk management issues involved with protracted or larger magnitude induced seismic events; and

(L) whether the Green Light, Yellow Light, Red Light system of mitigation of induced seismicity, proposed by the Illinois State Geological Survey and the Department, is appropriate or sufficient for mitigation of all adverse effects of induced seismicity in the active seismic zones in this State.

(g) The Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force shall investigate the issues under subsection (f), allow their investigations to inform their approval or denial of any permits, modifications, or disposal plans, and write and submit a report to the General Assembly, the Governor, the Hydraulic Fracturing Task Force, the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Public Health, the Illinois State Water Survey, the Illinois Pollution Control Board, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, the Illinois State Geological Survey, the Department of Insurance, the Illinois Attorney General, and to the public via the website of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and the website of the Department of Natural Resources. The report shall be as complete as possible when discussing the risks and the possible mitigation of the risks from induced seismicity and shall include recommendations and conclusions about induced seismic events in the active seismic zones listed in subsection (a), including:

(1) the risks of drilling and extracting oil, liquid natural gas, and natural gas in active seismic zones;

(2) the risks of drilling and operating Class II injection wells in active seismic zones;

(3) the storage, disposal, and use of fracturing waste or wastewater open pits in active seismic zones;

(4) earthquake induced contamination of air, water, and soil from oil and natural gas extraction operations and waste disposal, the clean up and public health effects of the contamination;

(5) emergency management recommendations during earthquakes involving areas of oil and natural gas operations and infrastructure;

(6) earthquake-induced spillage and leakage from oil and natural gas wells and infrastructure and Class II injection disposal wells;

(7) oil and natural gas infrastructure instability during earthquakes;

(8) bonding requirements for oil and natural gas drilling and operations and infrastructure in active seismic zones;

(9) insurance requirements for oil and natural gas drilling and operations and infrastructure in active seismic zones;

(10) best practices for the oil and natural gas industry in active seismic zones; and

(11) any and all emergency management, transportation, and communication recommendations related to the oil and natural gas industry and its operations before, during, and after a large naturally-occurring or induced earthquake.

(h) The report shall include recommendations to the General Assembly and Governor for legislation to protect the public health, environment, property, livelihoods, and communities from all reported adverse effects of induced seismicity in the Illinois active seismic zones, including recommendations to the General Assembly about legislation to limit damages, harms, risks, contamination, and legal challenges over liability secondary to induced seismic events in the active seismic zones and how to mitigate the risks from blowouts, spillage, leakage, and damages to the mechanical integrity of oil, liquid natural gas, and natural gas wells, drilling, Class II injection wells, waste and waste water containment, pipelines, infrastructure, chemicals, proppants, and byproducts from a significant naturally-occurring or induced earthquake. This report shall also include any and all emergency management, transportation, and communication recommendations related to the oil and natural gas industry and its operations before, during, and after induced seismicity and significant naturally-occurring seismic events.

(i) The Illinois Active Earthquake Zone Investigative Task Force shall submit its report on or before January 1, 2018.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.".