Great Lakes Basin States of Ohio and Michigan Deal With Fracking
The full report of “Hydraulic Fracturing in the Great Lakes Basin: The State of Play in Michigan and Ohio” is recently cited in the National Wildlife Federation Media Center Report. The concerns with fracking are serious. Every safety precaution should be taken in order to maximize the protection to society. At the same time, public policy supports mineral exploration. Until Legislators decide mineral exploration is no longer relevant, the issue will have to be dealt with again and again.
A new legal analysis by the National Wildlife Federation finds that laws in Michigan and Ohio need to be improved to protect the region's streams, rivers, lakes, and wildlife from the risks of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking.” Energy companies use this controversial technique to extract natural gas from fine-grained shale, injecting a mix of water, chemicals, and sand into a well at high pressures to crack open the rock. The natural gas then flows out into the well and is captured aboveground.
Fracking has raised significant environmental concerns, including the potential for impacts on water quality and water-dependent natural resources.
“Our analysis shows that Michigan and Ohio are doing some things right, but the states remain vulnerable to risks associated with fracking,” said Sara Gosman, water resources attorney for the National Wildlife Federation’s Great Lakes office and lecturer at the University of Michigan Law School. “We urge Michigan and Ohio to strengthen their laws to protect public health, wildlife and water resources now and for generations to come."
