! ! The!federal!government!and!municipalities!and!counties!(and!in!some!limited!cases,!regional! authorities!such!as!the!Delaware!River!Basin!Commission)!also!regulate!aspects!of!shale!gas! development.!!Yet,!even!in!these!situations,!the!states!have!significant!roles!to!play.!!Most! states!have!gained!primacy!to!apply!and!enforce!the!federal!Clean!Water!Act,!Safe!Drinking! Water!Act,!and!Clean!Air!Act.!!In!addition,!states!define!how!much!regulatory!authority!to! delegate!to!municipalities!and!counties!and!while!some,!such!as!Texas!and!New!York,!seem!to! allow!for!a!significant!degree!of!local!decision\making,!most!states!retain!most!regulatory! authority!in!the!state!capitol.! ! In!this!context,!scholars,!journalists,!policy\makers,!and!members!of!the!public!have!questioned! the!adequacy!of!state!regulation!of!shale!gas!development.!!Many!commentators!have!claimed! that!state!governments!are!insufficiently!protecting!public!health!and!safety!or!are!insufficiently! protecting!the!environment.!!Some!have!called!on!the!federal!government!to!step!in!and! assume!a!stronger!regulatory!role.!!Wiseman!and!Freeman!have!both!suggested!that!the! federal!government!could,!or!should,!create!comprehensive!federal!regulations!for!shale!gas! development!grounded!in!the!idea!of!cooperative!federalism!in!which!all!states!would!have!to! meet!and!enforce!a!federal!baseline!standard,!but!would!then!be!allowed!to!exceed!that! standard.!!As!Freeman!notes,!the!federal!government!has!taken!action!of!this!sort!before.!!She! draws!a!parallel!to!the!enactment!of!the!Surface!Mining!Control!and!Reclamation!Act!(SMCRA)! of!1977.44!!Congress!enacted!the!SMCRA!because!the!existing!state!laws!that!regulated!surface! coal!mining!were!deemed!to!be!inadequate!at!preventing!severe!environmental!degradation.45!! Congressman!Udall,!a!primary!force!behind!the!passage!of!the!bill,!wrote!that:! [Congress]!found!that!the!legitimate!and!irresistible!urge!on!the!part!of!a!state!to! protect!its!coal!industry!from!competitive!disadvantage,!vis\à\vis!coal!producers!in!other! states,!usually!overwhelmed!most!state!legislatures’!desire!to!impose!sound! reclamation!laws.!!Well!motivated!people!on!the!state!level!did!what!they!could,!but! without!federal!standards!political!reality!militates!in!favor!of!loose!controls.46! Does!a!similar!imperative!face!regulators!of!shale!gas!production!today?! ! This!thesis!seeks!to!answer!the!question:!Given(the(state(of(regulation(of(shale(gas( development,(should(the(federal(government(seize(primary(regulatory(authority,(leave(primary( regulatory(authority(with(the(states,(or(take(some(other(set(of(actions(to(improve(regulatory( outcomes?! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 44
!Ibid.! !Morris!K.!Udall,!“Enactment!of!the!Surface!Mining!Control!and!Reclamation!Act!of!1977!in! Retrospect,”!553–555.! 46 !Ibid.,!553.! 45
Chapter!1!–!Introduction!
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