Today’s essential reads.
FRACKING:
Posey County, Ind., Resident Fights Oil Company for His Property Rights
Gary Williams says he has denied CountryMark Energy permission to enter his property, a right he would be stripped of should a court decide against him. A state official explained that once the drilling permit has been issued, the company would own any oil it can recover from the parcel. Though it would be required to compensate Williams for the oil, Williams would not be able to stop the company from seeking its oil.
State Must Treat Hazardous Fracking Waste as Such
It’s really quite simple: New York needs to treat hazardous waste as hazardous.
Hydrofracking Moratorium Gets Support from Local Lawmakers
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are pushing to extend an existing moratorium on hydrofracking, a method of natural gas extraction that may pollute water and air, until June of next year. Industry officials say the practice is safe.
Labour Urges Government to Stop Fracking Around with Shale Gas
Labour has reiterated calls for the government to impose an immediate moratorium on shale gas projects in the UK until it has commissioned and completed its own report on the likely impact of the controversial technology.
BP OIL SPILL:
Lawmaker Wants Spill Cases Monitored
A Jefferson Parish lawmaker was expected to amend legislation on the House floor this afternoon to force state officials to begin monitoring and tracking medical cases related to last year’s Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Watts Studying Fish Response to Chemical Dispersant
Genes that encode different stress-response proteins — proteins that protect against a stressor — are essential for the survival of a cell under attack. This is true for any animal, including fish exposed to oil or chemical dispersant as a result of the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Man Suing BP After Injury Sustained in Crash Between Boats Aiding in Oil Spill Cleanup
A Terrebone Parish man is suing BP and several subcontractors and boats that were hired by the oil company to help in oil spill cleanup after he was injured when the boat he was on was crashed into by another vessel.
Al Jones: Red Snappers’ Lesions a Troubling Occurrence
For the first time, NOAA is warning anglers that some fish are sick and could pose a health risk if handled or eaten raw.
RADIATION:
WHO Report on Cellphone Radiation
Based on internet reports, a World Health Organization (WHO) international panel of experts recently concluded that cell phones are “possibly carcinogenic.” Carcinogenic means producing or tending to produce cancer.
‘Hawwadni Ha Nifhmek’ (Confuse Me to Help Me Understand)
Here we go again. I had to use Maltese for my title, because it puts it so aptly. “Confused about mobile phones and base stations risks to your health?” I wrote in July 2000, in my Sunday Times column “Sacrificial lambs to Midas”. Well, uncertainty still reigns on the subject. Over a decade later we are still getting experts telling us of “possible risks” to our and our children’s health.
