Today’s Essential Reads
FRACKING:
WOUB-TV To Air Live Call-In Show On Fracking
In recent months, debates have raged about how fracking could impact the region. Hydraulic fracturing (known as fracking) is a water-intensive industrial process that drillers use to collect the natural gas held in shale formations and it’s the topic of “Newswatch In-Depth: Fracking Frenzy” airing Tuesday, Feb. 28 at 8 p.m.
Salazar Hints at Fracking Disclosure
lack of transparency over the chemical makeup of hydraulic fracturing fluid might strike a blow to the shale gas industry, the U.S. interior secretary said.
Secrecy Loophole Could Still Weaken BLM’s Tougher Fracking Regs
New regulations drafted by the federal Bureau of Land Management would increase pressure on energy companies to disclose information about the chemicals they use in hydraulic fracturing, a process that extracts oil and natural gas from deep inside the earth.
Group Creates Website to Share Information About Fracking
Its website is under construction, and the same individuals associated with it are organizing a group to share information regarding oil and gas drilling and its potential environmental impacts. The website is www.lcountyfracking.org.
BP OIL SPILL:
What We Need to See In a BP Oil Spill Settlement
Rumors are flying that the feds and BP are about to announce a deal on what damages BP will pay for the April, 2010 blowout in the Gulf of Mexico. I have zero inside information on what the settlement terms will be, but here are some terms I think should be included.
BP Oil Spill: Billions of Dollars At Stake When Court Trial Begins This Month
Tens of billions of dollars will be at stake when BP heads to a US court this month to determine how much it owes for the massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill and how much it can shift to subcontractors.
Gulf Coast Lawmakers Push for Oil Spill Fine Money
Gulf Coast lawmakers, frustrated that Congress hasn’t moved quickly on legislation aimed at sending the region most of the fine money BP will pay for the 2010 oil spill, say they will try to attach the proposal to other bills.
Judge Quashes Transocean’s Subpoena to BP Employee
A federal magistrate has appointed a doctor to examine a BP PLC employee who claims medical problems prevent him from being questioned under oath about the deadly 2010 rig explosion that spawned the nation’s worst offshore oil spill.
RADIATION:
Mainichi: Japan Gov’t Seeking More Data to Treat People With Radiation Exposure
Japan hopes to conclude the agreement by the year-end so that data on radiation exposure and soil contamination accumulated by Belarus since the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster can be promptly used to treat people exposed to radiation from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, crippled by the March earthquake and tsunami, and decontaminate the soil, the official said.
