TagAlbany * Allegheny County

The Holy Grail: Drinking-water Contamination Confirmed in EPA Report Threatens U.S. Fracking Operations

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Considering all the money oil and gas companies pay their PR strategists and crisis management gurus, industry officials should have known better than to proclaim with absolute certainty that “fracking,” the controversial natural gas extraction process, not only has not, but cannot, contaminate drinking-water supplies. They should have known to leave a little wiggle room should an...

With the Drinking Water of 15 Million Americans at Stake, Feds Side with Frackers

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Just in case there’s anybody out there who still thinks our federal government has a shred of integrity following the debt-ceiling debacle, news from the fracking front will quickly disabuse any remaining die-hards of that notion. Rather than exercising their power to stop the oil and gas industry from continuing its feast at the fracking trough, the feds have entered the fray on the side...

Distorting the Facts: Oil and Gas Industry Pays Penn State $100,000 for Pro-Fracking Study

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We’re all aware that money talks, but the degree to which pro-industry interests are distorting public information on fracking was in particularly high relief this week as natural gas companies are in no-holds-barred pursuit of billions in potential profits. Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking” as it’s more commonly called, injects large volumes of pressurized water, sand...

Toxic-Free Zone: One City’s Approach to Protecting Residents from Fracking

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As New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) prepares to lift a ban that would re-open the Empire State to the controversial natural gas drilling process known as “fracking,” one upstate city is taking a unique approach to protecting its residents from the dangers posed by one of the fastest-growing sectors of the energy industry. The City Council in Auburn – located 20 miles west of Syracuse in...

The Fracking Wars: New York’s Legendary Tap Water in the Cross Hairs

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New York’s tap water is legendary. It’s envied around the world for its purity, taste and abundance. Every week, billions of gallons of fresh, clean water are delivered from large pristine upstate reservoirs to the taps of millions of people across the state. But now there are plans afoot that could turn New York’s award-winning water into a cautionary tale. New York Governor...

Pro-Fracking Arguments Fail to Grasp One Inconvenient Issue –– the Reality on the Ground

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The Wall Street Journal – owned by conservative gadfly Rupert Murdoch – ran an opinion piece over the weekend that showcases the untruths, convenient omissions and wildly unscientific cause-and-effect connections that are part and parcel of any pro-fracking argument. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is an aggressive (even by today’s rough-and-tumble standards) and highly controversial...

Preemptive Strike: Fracking Opponents Look to Ban the Practice Before It Starts

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The arc of the quintessential fracking battle is still taking shape, but it’s beginning to look like a recurring feature in the storyline may be the “ban” – a word drilling companies are loathe to even speak. We see that scene playing out in New Jersey where legislators, enviros and up-in-arms citizens are putting heat on Governor Chris Christie and the Delaware River Basin...

Protecting 9 Million New Yorkers from the Dangers of Fracking

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New York’s attorney general has taken the first step in turning back Exxon Mobil’s plan to use “fracking” on up to 18,000 gas wells in New York City’s watershed – an application of the highly controversial extraction process that would affect 9 million water-drinkers in New York and cost the state billions in beefed up water-filtering measures. For those of you...

New Study Links Drinking Water Contamination to Fracking: Can Proponents Still Keep a Straight Face?

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It just got much more difficult for frackers and their supporters to keep a straight face in the sizzling national debate over whether the benefits of hydraulic fracturing outweigh the dangers. The pro-fracking folk have argued – with increased hot air of late – that the swelling ranks of concerned citizens, enviros and wary public officials are making much ado about nothing when it comes to the...

Stuart H. Smith is an attorney based in New Orleans fighting major oil companies and other polluters.
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