President To Announce New Pollution Standards When Completing Gas Wells

Whatever the standards will be, they will be delayed two years

Updates

Later: Rigzone provides a much better explanation of the rules and the delay in implementation. And by my reckoning the delay is more than two years: the new rules won't go into effect until 2015. That's all of 2014, all of 2013, and most of 2012.

Later: here's the USA Today story reporting the Presidential announcement. The references are all to "gas wells." So, unless I'm missing something, this does not affect the Bakken. I must be missing something.

Original Post

Again, a most confusing story, the way it is written.

The Debbie Downer headline: President to announce federal standards to reduce pollution from fracking

But one has to read several paragraphs before you finally get to the pre-announcement:

Administration officials who briefed The Associated Press in advance of Wednesday's announcement said drillers now would be given an additional two years to reduce pollution during that stage. The Environmental Protection Agency will require drillers to burn off gas in the meantime, an alternative that can release smog-forming nitrogen oxides, but will still reduce overall emissions.

So, I guess we will wait to see if the President's announcement sheds more light on the new standards.  Unless I'm missing something in the story, the article simply states the President will delay for two years implementation of emissions standards involving gas wells.

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Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood, The Animals

Baby, do you understand me now?
Sometimes I feel a little mad,
But don't you know that no one alive can always be an angel?
When things go wrong, I feel real bad.

I'm just a soul whose intentions are good.
Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood.

The EPA has new standards to reduce pollution,
We'll just delay them for two years.

I'm just a soul whose intentions are good,
Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood.