Michigan’ Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has announced new requirements for hydraulic fracturing at oil and gas wells in Michigan. These new requirements come in the form of “instructions” from the Supervisor of Wells and are intended, in part, to address concerns about wells that are using more than 100,000 gpd of hydraulic fracturing fluid and/or making a water withdrawal of more than 100,000 gpd.

The new requirements are effective June 22, 2011. They are intended, in part, to fill the gap opened by the exemption for oil and gas operations from the state’s water withdrawal statute (NREPA Part 327). The requirements cover three main areas: 1) a requirement to use the water withdrawal assessment tool before making a large-quantity water withdrawal, as is done for such withdrawals under Part 327; 2) disclosure of MSDS sheets for chemicals in the hydraulic fracturing fluid (which will subsequently be made publicly available on the department’s web site); 3) submission of service company fracturing records showing fracturing volumes, rates, and pressures, and the volume of flowback water.