Companies can begin filing for hydraulic fracturing permits in Illinois, though it remains uncertain how soon the hotly debated oil and gas production technique might begin.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources has posted permit applications online, spokesman Chris Young said Tuesday. Companies must register with the department 30 days prior to submitting the application.

Three companies � Brigham Resources Operating LLC of Austin, Texas; Strata-X Inc. of Denver; and PXP Oil & Gas Inc. of Houston � had registered as of Tuesday.

�Once that is submitted (the permit application), we have to approve or deny it within 60 days,� said Young.

Companies must pay $13,500 per permit sought. Each application requires 27 separate documents on topics from disclosure of chemicals used in fracking, as the practice is known, to traffic management at the specific drilling site.

Young said it�s difficult to tell how many companies might follow or how soon.

�I�d just be guessing,� he said.

The 60-day rule could be modified if a waiver is requested by the applicant, said Young, or if there are questions about the application. Companies must also have a traditional oil and gas permit, though Young said the agency anticipates companies interested in fracking likely already would be in that business.

Young said DNR hired an additional 33 staff to implement the fracking program and has asked the General Assembly for supplemental funding for another 20 positions.

Lawmakers eliminated staff salaries for DNR�s oil and gas division in the spring session, according to Young, but the agency found enough funds to cover the salaries through the end of December.

The formal application process begins after months of regulatory disputes and thousands of public comments for and against fracking. Fracking relies on high-pressure injection of water, sand and chemicals deep into rock formations to break free gas and oil unattainable by conventional drilling.

On Friday, a judge in southwestern Illinois turned down a request from a group of landowners opposed to fracking for a preliminary injunction to block the practice. Attorneys for the landowners argued state regulators failed to follow their own rulemaking requirements and failed to consider scientific studies on the environmental dangers of fracking.

While turning down the preliminary injunction request, Madison County Circuit Judge Barbara Crowder did not rule on the basic legal challenge to the rulemaking process.

Annette McMichael with Southern Illinoisans Against Fracturing Our Environment (SAFE) said the group likely would appeal Friday�s ruling. Southern Illinois is considered the area of the state mostly likely to attract drillers.

�I would assume there will be quite a rush (for permits),� said McMichael. �It is my understanding, based on the history in other states, they will want to begin fracturing as soon as they possibly can.�

Executive vice president Brad Richards of the Illinois Oil and Gas Association said interest in the state among drillers has fallen as a result of the extended regulatory and legal fights.

�There�s probably six or seven companies I think are definitely going to give it a try,� said Richards.

He said, even if permits were approved and there were no further legal delays, it likely would be mid-2015 before production could begin.

�It�s going to take weeks just to drill the wells,� said Richards. �You�re talking about drilling a mile vertical and probably a mile sideways.�

Proponents argue fracking would bring badly needed jobs to an area of high unemployment in the state, while boosting domestic energy supplies. In addition to environmental dangers, opponents say most of the benefits would go to large, out-of-state energy companies.

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Fracking permits

The application for hydraulic fracturing � fracking � permits has been divided into 27 documents to include details on the following:

* Well and applicant description.

* Well setback.

* Drilling direction.

* Underground fresh water information.

* Fracking operations plan.

* Additional required maps.

* Chemical disclosure report.

* Water use self-certfication.

* Water source management.

* Fracturing fluids and flow-back.

* Well-site safety.

* Containment.

* Casing and cementing.

* Traffic management.

* Owner/permittee information.

* Public notice drafts.

* Plugging and restoration plan.

* Proof of insurance.

* Topsoil preservation.

* Dust control.

* Water quality monitoring.

* Violations report.

* Contractor statement.

* Emissions management statement.

* Radioactive materials management strategy.

* Waste disposal.

* Bond/municipal consent/registration update and additional information.

Source: Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Contact Tim Landis: 788-1536, tim.landis@sj-r.com, twitter.com/timlandisSJR.