The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection ordered a
permit for an underground injection well in the southern part of the state to be revoked, because the pit above ground does not meet the minimum pit and impoundment standards, and the well owners had operated for more than a year without a permit, Jessica Lilly reports for West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
"The Natural Resources Defense Council says the problem with this site in Fayette County is the same for fracking disposal systems across the country," Lilly writes. "Federal law that governs hazardous materials has a loophole for oil and gas waste, exempting it from regulation as hazardous waste. That exemption was created in 1980’s with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act."
Since horizontal fracking was perfected, causing the current oil and gas boom, states "have faced an upsurge in local political opposition to fracking," writes Charles Davis of the Department of Political Science at Colorado State University. "This, in turn, has led to the enactment of ordinances or regulations by local officials to protect their constituents from the impacts of drilling activities."
In a study published in the Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Davis examines how public officials in Colorado, Pennsylvania,
and Texas "address the question of state control versus local autonomy
through their efforts to shape fracking policy decisions."
"While local officials within Texas have succeeded in developing fracking ordinances with relatively little interference from state regulators, Colorado and Pennsylvania have adopted a tougher policy stance favoring the retention of preemptive oil and gas statutes," Davis writes. "Key factors that account for between state differences in fracking policy decisions include the strength of home rule provisions, gubernatorial involvement, and the degree of local experience with industrial economic activities." To read the report click here.
"The Natural Resources Defense Council says the problem with this site in Fayette County is the same for fracking disposal systems across the country," Lilly writes. "Federal law that governs hazardous materials has a loophole for oil and gas waste, exempting it from regulation as hazardous waste. That exemption was created in 1980’s with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act."
Since horizontal fracking was perfected, causing the current oil and gas boom, states "have faced an upsurge in local political opposition to fracking," writes Charles Davis of the Department of Political Science at Colorado State University. "This, in turn, has led to the enactment of ordinances or regulations by local officials to protect their constituents from the impacts of drilling activities."
"While local officials within Texas have succeeded in developing fracking ordinances with relatively little interference from state regulators, Colorado and Pennsylvania have adopted a tougher policy stance favoring the retention of preemptive oil and gas statutes," Davis writes. "Key factors that account for between state differences in fracking policy decisions include the strength of home rule provisions, gubernatorial involvement, and the degree of local experience with industrial economic activities." To read the report click here.
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