--- description: Tightens use of chemicals on federal land title: Fracking Rules Unveiled By Obama Administration image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blteb2300d8f6e8d2c5/6987848dcd1bba074a6f5c9f/fracking-obama.jpg?branch=production&width=1920&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [White House](/tag/white-house/) ## White House Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Obama Administration Unveils New Fracking Rules by [Alex Rogers](/author/alex-rogers/) ## Alex Rogers Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 20, 2015 5:07 PM CUT  Mody Torres (L) and Josh Anderson of Select Energy Services connect hoses between a pipeline and water tanks at a Hess fracking site near Williston, North Dakota Nov. 12, 2014. Mody Torres (L) and Josh Anderson of Select Energy Services connect hoses between a pipeline and water tanks at a Hess fracking site near Williston, North Dakota Nov. 12, 2014.Andrew Cullen — Reuters by [Alex Rogers](/author/alex-rogers/) ## Alex Rogers Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 20, 2015 5:07 PM CUT The Obama Administration [announced](http://www.doi.gov/news/pressreleases/interior-department-releases-final-rule-to-support-safe-responsible-hydraulic-fracturing-activities-on-public-and-tribal-lands.cfm "undefined") Friday the first major nationwide hydraulic fracturing safety rules since the technology sparked an energy boom in the U.S. Under the rules, companies drilling on federal land must publicly disclose what chemicals they use in “fracking” — a mining technique by which rocks are fractured by pumping a liquid compound deep underground — within 30 days of operations. The regulations also tighten standards for collecting wastewater and keeping the groundwater protected. The Interior Department said that meeting the new regulations would cost companies less than one-fourth of 1 percent of the estimated cost of drilling a well. The new rules apply to the over 100,000 oil and gas wells on federal government and American Indian lands and exclude some major drilling areas with their own ordinances. Only around 11 percent of U.S. natural gas production and 5 percent of oil production is produced on public lands, according to [Bloomberg](http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-20/u-s-sets-first-fracking-rules-since-process-fueled-energy-boom "undefined"). The Republican-led Senate has already [introduced a bill](http://www.nationaljournal.com/energy/obama-administration-unveils-controversial-fracking-standards-20150320 "undefined") to stop the regulations from coming into force, arguing that states alone should have the right to regulate hydraulic fracturing. Some environmental groups also oppose the regulations, arguing they don’t go far enough. The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) legislative rep, Madeleine Foote, [said](http://www.lcv.org/media/press-releases/LCV-Statement-on-Fracking-Rule-from-Department-of-Interior.html "undefined") the proposal was a “missed opportunity.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3752638/fracking-first-us-rules/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3752638/fracking-first-us-rules/"},"headline":"Obama Administration Unveils New Fracking Rules","datePublished":"2015-03-20T17:07:39.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T05:19:29.690Z","description":"Tightens use of chemicals on federal land","url":"https://time.com/3752638/fracking-first-us-rules/","keywords":["White House","Congress","fracking"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blteb2300d8f6e8d2c5/6987848dcd1bba074a6f5c9f/fracking-obama.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alex Rogers","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alex-rogers/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blteb2300d8f6e8d2c5/6987848dcd1bba074a6f5c9f/fracking-obama.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Mody Torres (L) and Josh Anderson of Select Energy Services connect hoses between a pipeline and water tanks at a Hess fracking site near Williston, North Dakota Nov. 12, 2014.","caption":"Mody Torres (L) and Josh Anderson of Select Energy Services connect hoses between a pipeline and water tanks at a Hess fracking site near Williston, North Dakota Nov. 12, 2014.","creditText":"Andrew Cullen — Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/white-house/","name":"White House"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3752638/fracking-first-us-rules/","name":"Obama Administration Unveils New Fracking Rules"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Watch: Keystone XL Pipeline by the numbers","description":"Keystone XL Pipeline by the numbers","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/xkX85rv0/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-11-18T16:00:10.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/xkX85rv0.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3752638/fracking-first-us-rules/","duration":"PT55S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3752638/fracking-first-us-rules/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```