Fracking Chemical Registry Expands Access

The sponsors of FracFocus, the online registry that provides a list of chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations, say they have improved the system’s functionality to expand the public’s ability to search its records. The Ground Water Protection Council and the Interstate Oil & Gas Compact Commission, which jointly created the website, say the public’s ability to search records will be enhanced. Other new features for 2015, they note, include updated information on chemical use, oil and gas production, and potential environmental impacts. Most oil and gas companies in the U.S. provide data to FracFocus on the chemical constituents—but not formulas—of the fluids they use in hydraulic fracturing. The process involves the high-pressure injection of water, sand, and chemicals into shale rock formations deep underground to release trapped natural gas and oil.