AUSTIN RRC commissioners have approved the agency’s Fiscal Year 2025 Oil and Gas Monitoring and Enforcement Plan which includes added information to provide the public further insight on the agency’s work to protect the environment and Texans.
The annual plans define the RRC’s strategic priorities for monitoring oil and gas activities and enforcing regulations across the state. They include the agency’s extensive field operations activities such as well inspections, orphaned well pluggings, and site remediations, a news release said.
New to this year’s plan is information related to technical permitting, and RRC monitoring and enforcement activities performed by the Oil and Gas Division’s Technical Permitting and Administrative Compliance Units. One example is the compliance team established by the division in 2023 to focus on post-permitting compliance at surface waste management facilities regulated by the Environmental Permits Section.
Also, for the first time, the RRC sought public feedback this year prior to developing the plan. Some of that input was used to develop priorities for monitoring and enforcement efforts in the plan, including providing more comprehensive flaring data, and evaluating difference methods to reduce orphaned wells older than 20 years.
“We continue to utilize our staff’s expertise and the agency’s technological advancements to serve Texans and their communities,” Danny Sorrells, RRC Deputy Executive Director and Oil and Gas Director, said in the release. “The new monitoring and enforcement plan provides more information on how we plan to utilize those key resources for regulation as the Texas oil and gas industry continues to be a vital element of the state and U.S. economy.”
The Fiscal Year 2025 Oil and Gas Monitoring and Enforcement Plan and a Spanish version of the plan can be found at https://rrc.texas.gov/oil-and-gas/compliance-enforcement/enforcement-activities/.
