Trump causes concern among oil and gas industry with comments on local fracking bans

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has raised some eyebrows with his recent remarks about hydraulic fracturing, Timothy Cama reports for The Hill. While Trump has long said he supports fracking, he now "says towns and states should be allowed to ban the drilling practice. That position is at odds with industry groups and congressional Republicans, who say the practice is safe and should be permitted nationwide."

Trump said, "I’m in favor of fracking, but I think that voters should have a big say in it. I mean, there’s some areas, maybe, they don’t want to have fracking. And I think if the voters are voting for it, that’s up to them." He said the country needs fracking, "but if a municipality or a state wants to ban fracking, I can understand that."

The comments have caused concern among some industry leaders, who say states, not communities, should make decisions about fracking, Cama notes. An oil refining industry executive, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Cama, "He said states and municipalities. That’s a big leap, and I’m sure he doesn’t appreciate the big leap he just took. The hope from the industry perspective is that if (Trump) gets elected, he would surround himself with detailed-oriented folks, and we’d be able to at least work with them."