Fracking regulations, please

California’s regulation of hydraulic fracturing—fracking—is deficient in light of technology advancements that could increase use of the oil-extraction method, a report finds.

Compiled by UC Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy and the Environment, the report “identifies several areas where the state’s knowledge base and existing regulatory scheme are deficient,” as its authors were quoted as saying in a recent Los Angeles Times article.

As oil companies look to expand fracking activity and state regulators work to develop regulations, the report made several recommendations for state lawmakers, including requiring 30-day advance notice to state regulators before oil and gas companies begin fracking; full disclosure of chemicals involved; more stringent requirements for testing and monitoring well integrity; and a prohibition on injecting fracking fluids near earthquake fault lines.