Global Frac News

Study claims hydraulic fracturing may pose health risks by David Erickson and Mark Anstoetter, 30, 2012, Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP According to the study, exposure to air pollutants, including benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene, xylene, heptane, octane, and diethylbenzene during well-completion activities presented the greatest potential for adverse health effects. During the completion phases, the study found ...

High Methane in Pennsylvania Water by by Mark Drajem, Bloomberg, March 30, 2012 Tests by the Environmental Protection Agency of water in Dimock, Pennsylvania, found elevated levels of methane consistent with leakage from gas drilling nearby, according to scientists who reviewed the data. Results from the first 11 wells tested by the EPA found one with a methane ...

Scientists use EPA data to point out high methane levels in Pa. water by E & E, March 30, 2012 U.S. EPA found high levels of methane in water from Dimock, Pa., consistent with leakage from gas drilling nearby, according to scientists who reviewed the data. According to test results from 11 wells, the agency discovered one with ...

Emergency responders at scene of explosion at natural gas compressor station by Laura Legere, March 29, 2012, The Times-Tribune Colleen Connolly, a spokeswoman for the Department of Environmental Protection, said regulators were alerted to the explosion at around 11:30 a.m. and are responding to the site. There is a natural gas blow off from the site, she said. ...

Municipalities file lawsuit against new shale drilling law by Laura Olson, March 29, 2012, Post-Gazette Seven municipalities that banded together in recent weeks in opposition to state’s Marcellus Shale gas drilling law filed a suit this afternoon challenging whether the state was authorized to supersede local regulation of gas drilling. … The suing municipalities argue that standardizing zoning ...

Backers say ordinance best way to keep water safe, Lawyer: Fracking law illegal by Martin Salazar, March 29, 2012, Las Vegas Optic Ortiz says contamination of any source of water can’t be tolerated. … “I would rather be sued than poisoned.” … “Slavery once was legal” Kathleen Dudley, who has been fighting oil and gas drilling in Mora ...

Beware the oil and gas industry by Doug Martens, March 28, 2012, Yukon News Should the Yukon open her arms to the tender wooing of oil and gas? Should the Yukon be open to oil and gas exploration? Here is the question we will not see on a territorial referendum any time soon. And isn’t that ...

ERCB on production vs. storage rights by Sarah MacLeod, March 28, 2012, Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP If there was effective communication, changes in reservoir pressure caused by production through the 11-26 well could result in gas that CrossAlta was storing on behalf of its customers to migrate into the Basal Quartz and to be produced through the ...

Frac threat charges laid by Lea Smaldon and John Gleeson, March 27, 2012, Mountain View Gazette Last Thursday, Sundre RCMP charged Kim Mildenstein, 39, with two counts of uttering threats after investigating an Energy and Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) complaint about a faxed Objection To An Energy Resources Project form it received March 15. The document writer raised ...

NAL resumes operations Lea Smaldon, March 27, 2012, Mountain View Gazette A company spokesperson wouldn’t comment on the evacuation. Clayton Paradis, NAL director of investor relations, did confirm though that work at the site didn’t permanently cease. “We did continue operations,” said Paradis. … Asked if anything has changed because of the alleged threat over fracking, Paradis said, “Today, ...

Ernst learned of alleged threat prior to Eagle Hill appearance by John Gleeson, March 27, 2012, Mountain View Gazette “Yes, I knew about it,” Ernst said. “What happens – and this is one of the parts about being fracked that is so upsetting – all day long my phone is ringing.” …  “And it wasn’t just at Eagle ...

Wyoming regulators wrong to guard fracking fluid contents, groups claim by Jermey Fugleberg, March 27, 2012, Star-Tribune Wyoming regulators improperly protected the identity of the chemical content of fluids used in hydraulic fracturing, a handful of groups contend in a lawsuit filed late last week. … Wyoming law allows the commission to protect trade secrets from public ...

Court order tries to sort out Porcupine Creek dispute by John Colson, March 27, 2012, Post Independent But attorneys working for Thompson said that the ruling did not go entirely Encana’s way, although they declined to discuss details until after the judge makes his decision public, which was expected to happen today. … “I thought they knew what ...

CAPP aims to ease fracking concerns by Troy Media, March 26, 2012 Bradley Walters, a professor of geography and environmental studies at Mount Allison University, says the Maritime Provinces have been caught flat-footed by the eastern spread of the U.S. shale gas boom. The fracking issue is of particular concern for Walters, who says the environmental and health ...

Gas well emergencies are real; don’t dismiss them by Star-Telegram, March 26, 2011 Note to Rusty Ward, Carrizo Oil & Gas vice president of regulatory affairs: Whenever there is a malfunction at one of your company’s wells like the one that happened near two schools in Mansfield on Friday, take it very seriously. …. “There was never any ...

In Effort to Protect Public Health, Groups Seek Fracking Chemical Information Press Release, March 26, 2012 Under regulations approved in 2010, Wyoming became the first state in the nation to require well operators to disclose the identities of chemicals that are mixed with water and injected into the ground during fracking. But since the regulations were adopted, ...

Encana donates $1.19 M to Wyo. non-profits by Mark Wilcox, March 26, 2012, Wyoming Business Report According to a release, the company funded a total of 154 initiatives that “generate positive change in the environment, education and community life.” Some of the initiatives also have the potential to benefit Encana, among them a donation to the University of ...

Ground-breaking scientific review calls for better methods for determining safety standards by The Endocrine Disruption Exchange, March 26, 2012 A paradigm shift in how chemicals are assessed for safety is underway, led by the need to address chemicals that affect the endocrine system at very low exposure levels. A ground-breaking scientific review by Laura Vandenberg and a team ...

Official raps fracking critics after sponsored trip by Neil Reid, March 25 2012, Fairfax NZ News “I think the results are very much a one-sided view of fracking in Canada, which isn’t surprising given that Apache funded the trip. “The report marginalises legitimate and everyday Kiwi concern into fracking. ”This isn’t a bunch of extremists or hardened activists. This ...

Spring brings water management issues to fore by Stephen Ewart, March 24, 2012, Calgary Herald When the Canada West Foundation released a report on water this week titled Stress Points, the think-tank concluded water issues are “beginning to emerge” in Western Canada and there will be economic consequences if they’re not addressed…. “Western Canada is facing a range ...

Don’t Gut Fisheries Act, Plead 625 Scientists by Andrew Nikiforuk, March 24, 2012, The Tyee.ca More than 625 Canadian scientists are demanding that the Canadian government abandon plans to gut the Fisheries Act, the nation’s most significant and oldest piece of environmental legislation. Scientists contacted by The Tyee called the changes shocking and unprecedented. “We believe that the ...

Natural Gas Wells Proliferation Poisoning Children’s Air, Research Suggests by Lynne Peeples, March 24, 2012, Huffingtonpost “This is so disturbing on so many levels,” … “So much is being said in news about how this is the new clean fuel,” she said. “It’s not.” … There are an incredible number of other industrial chemicals involved,” … The list ...

One last oil and gas blowout by John Thompson, March 23, 2012, Yukon News Yukon government official Ron Sumanik graciously accepted the glass of water, perhaps unaware of the stinging reply to follow. “Drink it now,” said Julie Frisch. “It might not be good in the future.” … Werner Rhein brought a placard. One side read: ...

gas industry tackles issues on ‘fracking’ by Yadullah Hussain, March 23, 2012, Financial Post “However, migration of natural gas into drinking water supplies as a result of inadequate cementing/casing of gas wells, including modern shale gas wells, has been clearly established in multiple settings,”… Industry officials also argue that there are technological capabilities to overcome ecological issues — ...

Will Woodstock Criminalize Hydraulic Fracturing? by Victoria Bekiempis, March 23 2012, Village Voice ​From a report earlier today, it looks like Woodstock might try outlawing hydraulic fracturing…. In other fracking news, Mother Jones noted today that physicians in Pennsylvania have basically been put under a gag order — they can get info on the health dangers of fracking ...

Woman charged with making threats against oilfield operator near Sundre by Calgary Herald, March 23, 2012 SUNDRE . RCMP have laid charges against a Sundre woman after threats were made against oilfield operator NAL resources. Police say the threats were made against employees of the company and equipment used in operations in the Sundre area. Kimberly ...

The ‘F’ Word: Unregulated Fracking at Oil Wells Raising Concerns by Jennifer London, Dina Demetrius, Lata Pandya, Alberto Arce, March 23, 2012, kcet.org The industry would like to keep facts about the process buried, but it’s got residents scared. In a “SoCal Connected” special report, correspondent Jennifer London unearths whether fracking is going on in Southern California and ...

Water a cause of war in future by NYdailynews, March 22, 2012 Drought, floods and a lack of fresh water may cause significant global instability and conflict in the coming decades…. U.S. intelligence agencies said in a report released Thursday. An assessment reflecting the joint judgment of federal intelligence agencies says the risk of water issues…threaten to disrupt ...

Alberta Hansard, March 22, 2012, The 27th Legislature, Fifth Session Mrs. McQueen: We’re doing an excellent job in making sure that we are protecting the environment and water. We’re doing groundwater mapping throughout this province. We’ve mapped from Edmonton to Calgary. We’ll be mapping in the southern district beyond that, and within three to five years this ...

Dr. Karlis Muehlenbachs at University of Alberta Edmonton March 21, 2012 Fracturing: How to assess its impact on groundwater: Lessons from Alberta, Canada

So, Is Dimock’s Water Really Safe to Drink? by Abrahm Lustgarten, ProPublica, March 20, 2012, corrected March 21 When the Environmental Protection Agency announced last week that tests showed the water is safe to drink in Dimock, Penn., a national hot spot for concerns about fracking, it seemed to vindicate the energy industry’s insistence that drilling had not ...

First Movers in Eco-Drilling: What to Do with Those Pesky Drill Cuttings by Barbara Saunders, March 21, 2012, Rigzone South of the brushy desert area of Pecos, Texas, is a test site for a project to turn once-detested drill cuttings into eco-friendly road surfaces … and more. Faced with historically difficult waste disposal challenges, researchers are now eager ...

How the US energy industry stopped worrying and learned to love fracking by The Irish Times, March 21, 2012 “In the whole spectrum of what you do to get shale gas out of the ground, there were some violations; they just didn’t happen to be hydraulic fracturing. They were more likely to be with well casing (flow-back water), ...

TINY DOSES OF GAS DRILLING CHEMICALS MAY HAVE BIG HEALTH EFFECTS, Authors of new study encourage more low-dose testing of endocrine-disrupting chemicals, with implications for the debate on natural gas drilling by Lisa Song, March 21, 2012, InsideClimate News But a new report shows that even low doses of some toxins can be harmful, and that finding could ...

About That Dimock Fracking Study: Result Summaries Show Methane and Hazardous Chemicals by Christine Shearer, March 21, 2012, Truthout In four of the six summaries, methane levels exceeded the 7 mg/l actionable threshold necessary for mitigation under Pennsylvania law…. One of the test results showed methane levels at seven times that limit.

Expert Panel Chair Appointed for Council Assessment on Shale Gas by Council of Canadian Academies, March 20, 2012 The Council is pleased to announce the appointment of John A. Cherry as Chair of the Expert Panel on Harnessing Science and Technology to Understand the Environmental Impacts of Shale Gas Extraction. John A. Cherry, Director of the ...

New report shows COGCC fails to enforce its own rules: 516 spills in 2011, only 5 fines assessed by Earthworks, March 20, 2012 Oversight failure demonstrates local jurisdictions shouldn’t be stripped of oil & gas regulatory authority…highlights of the Colorado-specific findings include: As the number of wells drilled increases in Colorado, the number of inspections is decreasing. It is physically ...

Study finds health risks to well-pad neighbors by John Colson, March 20, 2012, Post Independent A new study warns of health risks from air pollution to those living within a half mile of gas drilling pads, particularly during the hydraulic fracturing phase. The study, known as a Human Health Risk Assessment, found that potentially toxic airborne chemicals have ...

Jessica Ernst rejects violence, threats as solution by John Gleeson, March 20, 2012, Mountain View Gazette An internationally recognized anti-fracking activist who spoke at Eagle Hill last week rejected “violence or threats” as an appropriate response to public concerns. “It’s a very emotional thing, injecting toxic chemicals into our drinking water, to have our lives invaded,” Rosebud resident ...

Two arrested after threats made against fracking site by Lea Smaldon, March 20, 2012, Mountain View Gazette The Energy Resources Conservation Board contacted Sundre RCMP after receiving a faxed correspondence Thursday morning that staff “perceived to be threatening,” said ERCB spokesperson Bob Curan…. “No, people certainly express concern about development on a regular basis but rarely do we ...

Paddy sounds fracking alarm by John Gleeson, March 20, 2012, Mountain View Gazette The past reeve of Mountain View County launched a fracking awareness campaign last week, calling on his council and other municipalities to press the Alberta government to get serious about regulating the controversial practice. “I believe we have an unsuspecting public that isn’t being told ...

Study shows air emissions near fracking sites may pose health risk Press Release, News Room University of Denver, Colorado, March 19, 2012 The study is entitled “Human Health Risk Assessment of Air Emissions from Development of Unconventional Natural Gas Resources.” It was accepted for publication on 2/11/2012 by Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd.

Air emissions near natural gas drilling sites may contribute to health problems by News-Medical.net, March 19, 2012 “Our data show that it is important to include air pollution in the national dialogue on natural gas development that has focused largely on water exposures to hydraulic fracturing,” said Lisa McKenzie, Ph.D., MPH, lead author of the study and research ...

Colorado study finds fracking risks for nearby residents by Mark Jaffe, March 19, 2012, The Denver Post People living within a half-mile of oil-and-gas well fracking operations were exposed to air pollutants five times above a federal hazard standard, according to a new Colorado study…. “We are seeing indications that oil and gas operations can release chemicals that ...

Human Health Risk Assessment of Air Emissions from Development of Unconventional Natural Gas Resources by Lisa M. McKenzie, Roxana Z. Wittera, Lee S. Newmana, John L. Adgatea, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado, March 19, 2012, erierising Results: Residents living ≤ ½ mile from wells are at greater risk for health effects from NGD than are ...

Mystery of fracking chemicals worries Californians by Michael J. Mishak, March 19, 2012, Los Angeles Times Last year, the energy industry scuttled a bill that would have enlisted California in the growing ranks of states that require companies to disclose what they put into the ground. … “The communities have been left on their own to figure this ...

Colorado study links fracking to air pollution by Cathy Proctor, March 19, 2012, Denver Business Journal The report is based on three years of air samples collected by the Garfield County Department of Public Health and Olsson Associates Inc. The county asked the school to look at the potential health impacts for residents of Battlement Mesa, a 5,000-person ...

Fracking’s Health and Environmental Impacts Greater Than Claimed (Part 2 of 3) by Walter Brasch, March 19, 2012, Truthout Barry Russell, president of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, says “no evidence directly connects injection of fracking fluid into shale with aquifer contamination.” Fracking “has never been found to contaminate a water well,” says Christine Cronkright, communications director ...

32-unit village no more by David Thompson, March 18, 2012, Williamsport Sun-Gazette Now 82, Fravel, a widow, recently received news that left her shocked and anxiety-ridden. Former park owner Richard A. “Skip” Leonard told residents he sold the 37-unit park to Aqua PVR LLC. The company, whose parent company is Bryn Mawr-based Aqua America, plans to eliminate the ...

FRACKING: Pennsylvania Gags Physicians (Part 1 of 3) by Walter Brasch, March 18, 2012, The Moderate Voice Over the expected lifetime of each well, companies may use as many as nine million gallons of water and 100,000 gallons of chemicals and radioactive isotopes within a four to six week period. The additives “are used to prevent pipe corrosion, ...

Play about hydraulic fracturing presented for high school students, residents by Jeremy Fugleberg, March 17, 2012, Capser Star-Tribune It’s a dramatic retake on a 130-year-old play by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen called “Enemy of the People,” which centers on a scientist’s discovery that tanneries are poisoning the hot springs on which his town’s economy depends. The updated version ...

NC regulators: Fracking is safe with right rules by Emery P. Dalesio, March 16, 2012, Associated Press “The number one conclusion is that North Carolina is not ready to frack – not today and perhaps not for years. The report underscores just how many unanswered questions there are and how many problems would need to be addressed before ...

Dimock: water supplies tested by EPA by Laura Legere, March 16, 2012, Times Shamrock Dimock resident Scott Ely said his test results showed five compounds above their trigger levels, including arsenic, chromium, lithium, sodium and fluoride. The arsenic level in his well water, 7.6 micrograms per liter, was below the federal drinking water standard of 10 micrograms per ...

The 10 Scariest Chemicals Used In Hydraulic Fracking by Michael Kelley, March 16, 2012, Business Insider A 2011 congressional report on the chemicals used in hydraulic fracking, states that the 14 leading hydraulic fracturing companies in the U.S. injected 10.2 million gallons of more than 650 products that contained chemicals that are known or possible human carcinogens, regulated ...

Scientific American: Can Fracking and Carbon Sequestration Coexist? by Christa Marshall and ClimateWire, March 16, 2012, Scientific American UNDERGROUND CONFLICT: Fracking for natural gas may require shattering geologic formations that efforts to store CO2 permanently underground require to be impermeable. … The process is designed to increase permeability of the rock over a long distance.

How a Pennsylvania Law Has Elevated the Fracking Battle to a Civil Rights Fight by Steven Rosenfeld, March 16, 2012, AlterNet “What we are doing with our ordinances is challenging the authority of state government to license the corporations to violate rights,” said Ben Price, Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) project director. “The courts have never seen ...

Tiny Wyoming Town Plays Big Role In Fracking Fight by Pierre Bertrand, March 15, 2012 International Business Times The Pavillion controversy began after Canadian energy company EnCana Corp. (NYSE: ECA) started drilling for natural gas several miles outside of town, said John Fenton, chairman of Pavillion Area Concerned Citizens, which is trying to hold the company accountable….” ...

Medina County couples file federal lawsuits over problems with wells by Bob Downing, March 14, 2012, Beacon Journal Two Medina County couples have filed lawsuits in federal court in Cleveland against a gas-drilling company for allegedly contaminating their wells and exposing them to toxic chemicals. Neighbors Mark and Sandra Mangan and William and Stephanie Boggs, who ...

Tennant to head enviro monitoring panel by Dave Mabell, March 14, 2012, Lethbridge Herald Last year, he called on the Alberta government to create an arms-length, “science-driven” system of monitoring the province’s environment. … The panel’s key recommendation, Tennant said, was an independent environmental monitoring commission “as a science-driven, arm’s length and operationally excellent public agency.”… “This is ...

Gas Wells Leak – Even Upside Down – in Australia 44% of gas wells leaking in the Tara Coalbed Methane field by Will Cottrell, March 14, 2012, Shaleshockmedia A study of a gas field in Queensland, Australia has found 44% of gas wells leaking…. The report adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that gas drilling inevitably leads ...

Medina County families say drilling is polluting their water wells by Alison Grant, March 13, 2012, Updated March 15, 2012, The Plain Dealer Neighbors Mark and Sandra Mangan, and William and Stephanie Boggs, who live on State Road in Granger Township, said Landmark 4 LLC’sdrilling operation contaminated their private water wells, their houses and land with ...

NY Assembly calls for fracking health impact study by CBS News, March 13, 2012 The study would include research into other states’ experiences with fracking; estimated costs of any health impacts to the state, insurers, employers and the health care system; and a long-term plan for monitoring and mitigating health impacts.

Drilling letter ‘misleading’ by Bob Demulder, regional vice president, Nature Conservancy of Canada, Alberta Region, March 13, 2012, The Cochrane Eagle The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) has been working in Alberta for more than 40 years. In that time, we have completed more than 200 projects that protect more than 185,000 acres (75,000 hectares) of ...

Study: Fracking Could Be Killing Farm Animals, Pets by Sandy Smith, March 12, 2012, EHSToday A new study suggests that dozens of cases of illness and death among farm animals such as horses and cows, fish and pets such as dogs and cats could have resulted from exposure to hydrofracking. Often, the owners of the animals also were ...

Breaking up is hard to do by Thomas Crosbie Media Ltd., March 11, 2012 Some, even in the scientific community, remain suspicious of the claims of fracking proponents. Tony Ingraffea is a professor of engineering at Cornell University. He has done significant research into the effects of fracking. Asked about the pro-fracking argument, that there is no proven ...

The potent mixture behind fracking fluids by Carrie Tait, March 10, 2012, Globe and Mail Slick water frack fluid feels like slimy water, has the viscosity of milk, and sports a yellowish tinge. The fluids used in so-called foam fracks and gelled water fracks are thicker – indeed, the stuff is nicknamed “ploppy gel” because of the way ...

Exxon: Fracking failure in China, Europe shale by Bloomberg News, March 9, 2012, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review “Some of the shales don’t respond as well to hydraulic fracturing,” Tillerson said during a meeting with reporters after his presentation to analysts. “It’s going to take research and time in the lab to understand that.”

The American oil boom and its impact on Canada by Dr. Sherry Cooper, March 9, 2012, Special to Financial Post Potential pollutants entering the air and water supply are of great concern. Drilling is disrupting communities, damaging roads, and increasing costs to local governments. Some are worried about the effect of drilling on earthquakes…. In some regions, like ...

ERCB approves well in vicinity of gas storage reservoir by Gavin S. Fitch and Michael C. Barbero, March 9, 2012, McLennan Ross LLP The proposed well is located approximately 1 km from the boundary of the CrossAlta Gas Storage & Services gas storage reservoir. CrossAlta, a joint venture of TransCanada Energy and BP Canada, uses the depleted ...

Fracking Industry May Lack Will to Avoid Environmental Impacts, Report Finds by Environmental Leader, March 9, 2012 The natural gas industry is technologically capable of tapping shale gas resources, but some companies may have trouble managing the environmental and social risks involved, according to a report by the Investor Responsibility Research Center Institute….these risks could impede profitable extraction. ...

Fracking Industry May Lack Will to Avoid Environmental Impacts, Report Finds by Environmental Leader, March 9, 2012

Taranaki Residents warn Hawkes Bay against Fracking by Tag Oil on their Farms by Hawke’s Bay Ltd., March 8, 2012 Sarah Roberts says the ground water around her farm in Taranaki has been contaminated by work at two TAG Oil wells, just one kilometre away. Ms Roberts says she hopes land owners in Hawke’s Bay are not exposed ...

Doddridge County Resident Says Water Well Damaged by Oil and Gas Industry by Jamie Stover, March 8, 2012, Barbour, Doddridge, Randolph and Ritchie County Reporter “Basically, they told us sorry about your luck,”… They also said they did receive water deliveries for a short while. But that has since stopped. Now, they are on their own.

Fracking and Psychological Operations: Empire Comes Home by Steve Horn, March 8, 2012, Truth-out The militarization of public and community relations efforts by the natural gas industry can be seen quite clearly through these alarming excerpts from these three presentations. The reason for militarization is quite clear, though uncomfortable to confront. By its very nature, the gas industry ...

Local Fracking Talk Brings Revelations by Edward Durand, March 8, 2012, indymedia Dr. John O’Connor and Jessica Ernst from Canada gave a series of talks on ‘The realities of hydraulic fracturing and associated health risks’ across Ireland….

Council of Canadians meets with Irish Minister of Energy to talk fracking by Emma Lui, March 8, 2012, rabble.ca It is also interesting to note that the Irish government arranged a meeting with the Council of Canadians while the Canadian government has failed to consult with the public here in Canada despite their two federal review processes. We ...

Landowner warns Encana to stay off of his property, Dispute escalates over devastation at Porcupine Creek by John Colson, March 8, 2012, Post Independent In warning the company to stay away, Thompson accused Encana of violating the damage and repair provisions of the 1997 agreement… Thompson also told Encana in the email, “Any further work on my property will ...

WATCH: Blood Tribe member vows to fight charges over anti-fracking protest by APTN National News, March 8, 2012 A member of the Blood reserve in southern Alberta is facing criminal charges of intimidation. But Lois Frank is not a gang member or a loan shark, she’s just a woman who attempted to block the site of a fracking ...

Fracking Democracy: Why Pennsylvania’s Act 13 May Be the Nation’s Worst Corporate Giveaway by Steven Rosenfeld, March 7, 2012, Alternet The law strips rights from communities and individuals while imposing new statewide drilling rules. … “The state has surrendered over 2,000 municipalities to the industry. It’s a complete capitulation of the rights of the people and their right ...

Report: Fracking Could Cause a New Global Water Crisis “Does the rest of the world want to live this nightmare?” by Common Dreams, March 7, 2012 “Fracking is a dangerous American export that should be viewed critically by countries just starting to engage in the practice. Modern drilling and fracking have caused widespread environmental and public health problems, ...

What the Frack is in That Water? by Lena Groeger, ProPublica, March 7, 2012

Labour federation says energy companies made millions exploiting government loophole by Karen Kleiss, Edmonton Journal, March 7, 2012 The Alberta Federation of Labour says energy companies exploited a loophole in the province’s drilling stimulus programs, forcing the province to spend about $2.9 billion, more than double the projected cost….“The governments’ own staff knew that certain energy companies were ...

Rolling Stone Responds to Chesapeake Energy on ‘The Fracking Bubble’ by Jeff Goodell, March 6, 2012, Rolling Stone Bias in the Duke study. There is some poetry in the fact that scientists at McClendon’s alma mater were the first to conduct a rigorous, peer-reviewed study showing methane migration into drinking water wells near drilling sites. The study was ...

Morton rejects call for moratorium on fracking by John Gleeson, March 6, 2012, Mountainview Gazette Energy Minister Ted Morton has rejected a call from the Alberta Surface Rights Group for a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing. “A moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in Alberta is not being considered. The Alberta government … is confident the current regulatory requirements ensure safe hydraulic ...

“The EPA can’t assess fracking in Leitrim” – Jessica Ernst by Leitrim Observer, March 6, 2012 Jessica Ernst addressing the meeting in the Bush Hotel where she gave a talk on Life inside a Frac Experiment. “Can the EPA assess the effects of fracking in Co Leitrim? Not according to scientist Jessica Ernst who visited the area targeted by ...

Jessica Ernst packs hall at Ballroom of Romance by Press Officer Love Leitrim, March 6, 2012,  mylocalnews They used to come from far and wide on bicycles to the iconic Ballroom of Romance, in its heyday in the 1950′s according to my aunt who went there. But this was no social outing that saw a full house of up to ...

Website for fracking fluid disclosure planned by Victoria Paterson, March 6, 2012, Mountainview Gazette Alberta’s energy regulator is heading towards a searchable online database disclosing the contents of fracking fluid – eventually. Cal Hill, the executive manager of the regulatory development branch of the Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB), confirmed the intention to have a website during ...

Canadian Provinces Follow US States in Hydraulic Fracing Guidelines, Rules by Paula Dittrick, March 5, 2012, Oil and Gas Journal The Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) already has various directives in place that cover industry operating practices as outlined by CAPP, said ERCB spokesman Bob Curran. ERCB has collected information on frac fluid ingredients from ...

Risks Rise for Fracking by Sharon Kelly, March 5, 2012, The Environmental Magazine The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) warned New York regulators, who are considering if and how to lift the state’s temporary moratorium on shale gas drilling, about the potential for fracking to contaminate drinking water…. Several major news venues, including The New York Review of Books ...

Council’s anti-hydrofracking vote brings ovation by Mark Scheer, March 5, 2012, Niagara Gazette City lawmakers received something on Monday that they don’t receive very often, if at all — not one, but two standing ovations. The first applause followed the council’s unanimous vote in favor of a new law that bans hydrofracking-related activities, including the treatment of so-called ...

Dimock, Pennsylvania: Water Tested As EPA Heightens Scrutiny by Huffingtonpost, March 5, 2012 “If there is something wrong with the water, who is responsible?” she asked. “Who’s going to fix it, and what does it do to the value of the property?”

Alberta aims to get public onside in fracking debate, Province will stress education, transparency by Trish Audette, Edmonton Journal, March 5, 2012 “Public education, community engagement, even media engagement are themes that seem to be growing around this to make sure that we’re not maybe repeating the same thing we saw in the oilsands, where everybody seemed to have ...

Well-drilled in promising a lot about the fractious issue of sourcing gas by Barry O’Halloran, The Irish Times, March 2, 2012 A way has to be found to do this stuff safely, responsibly

Butler County residents protest after state tests of their wells absolve driller by Don Hopey, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 2, 2012 Janet McIntyre of The Woodlands, a rural community in southern Butler County, said her well water foams and turns purple when it comes out of her faucet. “When I bathe in it, I get rashes, so I’m thinking ...

The Assessment Review Board Reduces Methane Contaminated Property’s Taxation Value to Zero by John M. Bulman, Weirfoulds LLP, March 2, 2012 An insurance broker the property owner consulted could not obtain insurance on the house and property because of the methane. Unable to bear the costs of bringing the methane control system up to standard, the owners ...

Minister should do more to protect groundwater by Nielle Hawkwood, March 12, 2012, Rockyview Weekly I attended a meeting of Action for Agriculture at Balzac on March 2. At that meeting, I asked the Minister of Environment and Water why her government has not declared a moratorium on fracking in Alberta. In her response, she stated ...

The Big Fracking Bubble: The Scam Behind the Gas Boom by Jeff Goodell, March 1, 2012, Rolling Stone It’s not only toxic – it’s driven by a right-wing billionaire who profits more from flipping land than drilling for gas…. McClendon’s primary goal is not to solve America’s energy problems, but to build a pipeline directly from your wallet ...

Rex Energy Cuts off Families’ Access to Safe Drinking Water after Contamination from Fracking by Iris Marie Bloom, March 1, 2012, EcoWatch Rex has admitted that two of their Conoquenessing gas wells had casing failures in late 2010, shortly before Conoquenessing families, in an area called the Woodlands, reported that their water changed abruptly in January 2011….Workers have ...

Animals are dying in gas-drilling country. Are humans next? by Jonathan Purtle, March 1, 2012, philly.com What do 17 dead cows, seven stillborn puppies, an anorexic horse, and a delirious child have in common? Unfortunately, there’s no punch line to this one. According to research published recently in New Solutions, a peer-reviewed journal that focuses on environmental and occupational ...

Actor does not want fracking to destroy county’s image by Sarah Saunderson, Impartial Reporter, March 1, 2012 One of Fermanagh’s best known actors has spoken out strongly against fracking, describing the practice as an “absolute nightmare” that would destroy the county’s clean, green image overnight…. “We are all very worried about fracking. I think that is going to ...