Today’s Essential Reads
FRACKING:
Shale Gas Drilling Protest Camp Sets Up in Lancashire
Campaigners opposed to a controversial gas extraction technique known as “fracking” have set up a protest camp in Lancashire.
Pa. Gov: Drilling Fee Should Aid Locals, Cleanups
Gov. Tom Corbett revealed more details about the kind of fee he wants to impose on the state’s booming natural gas industry to pay for regulating it and for the damage it causes, saying some money should go to the state for environmental cleanups.
Greens Call Montana Fracking Rules Inadequate
Montana recently joined an increasing number of states, including Michigan, in regulating the practice of hydrofracking by requiring disclosure of the chemical used the process, but environmentalists say the rules don’t provide enough protection.
The New Boom? Fracking Process Sparks Controversy
Several companies are pursuing hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, of the natural gas-rich Marcellus shale and oil-laden Utica shale deposits that lie far beneath the earth’s surface in Ohio and surrounding states.
BP OIL SPILL:
Yesterday the federal investigation into the Deepwater Horizon blowout released its findings that BP’s cost-cutting measures, poor risk management, and failure to respond to critical warnings led to the oil disaster. Investigators also found that Halliburton and Transocean share blame for their own faulty operations and decision making.
Will Latest Gulf Spill Report Prompt Congress To Act?
“The latest probe into last year’s Gulf of Mexico blowout and oil spill — a federal report that blames much of the disaster on poor management decisions by BP PLC — has elicited strong but varied responses on Capitol Hill, but its chances of prompting immediate legislative action remain slim.”
U.S. Set to Sanction BP, Contractors
The U.S. offshore drilling regulator could issue sanctions as early as next week against BP and the major contractors involved in last year’s Gulf oil spill, an agency official said on Thursday.
BP Denies Request for Beach-Cleaning Equipment
BP has denied a request from the Alabama town of Gulf Shores for more beach-cleaning machinery to remove tar balls left by Tropical Storm Lee.
RADIATION:
Reprocessed Nuclear Waste Returns to Japan
A ship carrying highly radioactive waste from Britain arrived Thursday morning in Japan, as local residents strongly protested the first such shipment since the Fukushima nuclear accident.
