The Fracking News – Votes Matter!!
The Fracking News
HB 1950 passed the House Finance Committee last week. Along with decent environmental protections, it includes the Governor’s impact fee, as well as a provision to completely strip the authority of municipalities to zone oil and gas operations. If passed, it would pull the rug out from under Indiana County’s process to rewrite the conservation zone ordinance. Rep. Dave Reed is a co-sponsor of this bill.
This bill has received wide condemnation, except, of course, from the industry. Maybe because under HB1950, drillers will be able to buy permits. What’s not to love?
Harrisburg is indeed a mess, here’s a very good summary of where the Senate, House, and Governor are in putting together fracking legislation.
Fracking accidents will happen. Last week there was a massive gas explosion, and a massive frack fluid spill. And this evidence that fracking causes earthquakes just keeps popping up, at least the English admit it.
DEP is about to issue new guidance on treating drilling wastewater. We hope that they do better than the voluntary halt to dumping wastewater called for a few months ago, because it turns out there’s still elevated levels of Bromides in PA waters.
An $8 billion dollar deal with a few natural gas exporters blows the industry’s “domestic energy” B.S.
And lastly, in case you thought that it was only Rep. Reed co-sponsoring legislation contrary to the interests of constituents, read about how Senator White is pushing legislation to drill on college campuses. And here’s the kicker, White low-balls the university : “The House bill, whose lead sponsor is Matthew Baker, R-Tioga, and a member of the State System’s board of governors, would allocate 60 percent of the proceeds to campuses with deposits and 40 percent to the others; the Senate version flips that ratio, and its lead sponsor is Sen. Don White, R-Indiana.”
One last thing, don’t forget to vote!!
Coalition for a Healthy County 