Friday, May 11, 2012

New Proposal on Fracking Gives Ground to Industry

Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times

A natural gas well in Pennsylvania. The industry objected to a proposal requiring chemicals to be disclosed 30 days before drilling.

By JOHN M. BRODER

Published: May 4, 2012 WASHINGTON —

The Obama administration on Friday issued a proposed rule governing hydraulic fracturing for oil and gas on public lands that will for the first time require disclosure of the chemicals used in the process.

But in a significant concession to the oil industry, companies will have to reveal the composition of fluids only after they have completed drilling — a sharp change from the government’s original proposal, which would have required disclosure of the chemicals 30 days before a well could be started.

The pullback on the rule followed a series of meetings at the White House after the original regulation was proposed in February. Lobbyists representing oil industry trade associations and individual major producers like ExxonMobil, XTO Energy, Apache, Samson Resources and Anadarko Petroleum met with officials of the Office of Management and Budget, who reworked the rule to address industry concerns about overlapping state regulations and the cost of compliance.

Read More: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/05/us/new-fracking-rule-is-issued-by-obama-administration.html?_r=1&emc=tnt&tntemail1=y

High Volume Horizontal Hydraulic Fracturing

Concerned Burlington Neighbors formed in July of 2011 over a discussion about the pro's and con's of "fracking" for natural gas. We are small farmers, business people, retired people, gardeners, artists, teachers, writers, people who fish and hunt and call the beautiful valleys and hills of Burlington home.

We sent out a survey to find out if we were alone in our concern about gas drilling. It turned out that although Burlington residents are quiet and respectful of their neighbors privacy, over 61% of those responding were against "Hydro-Fracturing / Gas Drilling in our Community" and that 11% were unsure. We have since held two informational meetings for the community, one with local experts presenting information about the “fracking” process. Our second meeting was a series of videos highlighting farmers and business people in Pennsylvania whose lives have been negatively impacted by the drilling.

We now attend Town Board meetings and have become involved in our town’s attempt to develop a comprehensive plan to protect our valuable resources. You may have noticed the weekly Wharton Valley Pennysaver ads with information about drilling. This website was launched to post announcements and share additional information we receive from a variety of sources. We hope that you find it helpful. Please join in our conversation.

Concerned Burlington Neighbors

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