January 25, 2017 Briana Mordick California state agencies last week said they’ll put the interests of Big Oil and Gas before the interests of public health. The California Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources’ (DOGGR) and State Water Resources Control Board’s (SWRCB) plan will allow oil and gas companies to violate state regulations, miss agreed-upon deadlines, […]
Read MoreCategory: Fracking impacting water sources
Final Report on Injection Wells
Howard Wilshire, October 2016 Programs for disposing of fluid wastes by injection into the ground in wells are regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974. Rules for permitting such wells are specified in EPA’s Underground Injection Control (UIC) program; the basic purpose is to prevent contamination of […]
Read MoreGlobal Warming’s Terrifying New Chemistry
Our leaders thought fracking would save our climate. They were wrong. Very wrong. By Bill McKibben March 23, 2016 Global warming is, in the end, not about the noisy political battles here on the planet’s surface. It actually happens in constant, silent interactions in the atmosphere, where the molecular structure of certain gases traps heat that […]
Read MoreToxins Found in Fracking Fluids and Wastewater, Study Shows
Posted on January 6, 2016 Stone Hearth News Newswise — In an analysis of more than 1,000 chemicals in fluids used in and created by hydraulic fracturing (fracking), Yale School of Public Health researchers found that many of the substances have been linked to reproductive and developmental health problems, and the majority had undetermined toxicity […]
Read MoreOil Industry Illegally Dumps Fracking Wastewater
October 6, 2015 California state documents obtained by the Center for Biological Diversity in October 2014 revealed that the oil industry had illegally dumped almost three billion gallons of wastewater from fracking (hydraulic fracturing to extract oil and gas) into central California aquifers. According to the Center for Biological Diversity report, the leaking occurred through at […]
Read MoreActivists warn that SB 350 will do nothing to address CA oil and gas drilling
by Dan Bacher Governor Jerry Brown, in yet one more photo opportunity to portray himself as the “Green Governor,” will join government, climate, business, environmental justice and community leaders today in Los Angeles to sign legislation – SB 350 by Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de León (D-Los Angeles), This bill “bolsters California’s nation-leading commitment […]
Read MoreGroups Charge Delta Tunnels Plan with Violating Clean Water Act
Environmental and fishing groups on October 7 alerted the Federal and State agencies responsible for issuing permits before any construction of the Delta Tunnels can start that the controversial project will violate the federal Clean Water Act (CWA). A 15-page letter from the groups documents multiple violations of the landmark CWA if the project is […]
Read MoreEnvironmental Group Seeks Injunction to stop Fracking in California
By Sandy Mazza, Daily Breeze July 31, 2015 A national environmental organization went to court this week demanding an immediate halt to hydraulic fracturing and other intensive well-stimulation methods until California petroleum industry regulators can consider new scientific findings of troubling health and environmental threats. If a judge agrees with the Center for Biological Diversity, […]
Read MoreLawsuit Seeks to Halt Illegal Dumping of Toxic Oil Waste Into California’s Imperiled Water Supplies
Will Rostov Staff Attorney, Earthjustice May 7, 2015 San Francisco, CA Environmental groups challenge ‘emergency’ rules permitting unlawful contamination of protected aquifers This is DOGGR outrageously re-writing the law to allow needless and unlawful contamination of drinking water during a severe drought for the benefit of the oil industry. A lawsuit filed today by environmental […]
Read MoreFracking is Depleting Water Supplies in America’s Driest Areas, Report Shows
By Suzanne Goldenberg, The Guardian February 11, 2015 America’s oil and gas rush is depleting water supplies in the driest and most drought-prone areas of the country, from Texas to California, new research has found. Of the nearly 40,000 oil and gas wells drilled since 2011, three-quarters were located in areas where water is scarce, […]
Read MoreState Let Oil Companies Taint Drinkable Water in Central Valley
By David R. Baker January 31, 2015 Updated: February 1, 2015 12:11pm Leah Millis / The Chronicle Oil companies in drought-ravaged California have, for years, pumped wastewater from their operations into aquifers that had been clean enough for people to drink. They did it with explicit permission from state regulators, who were supposed to protect […]
Read MoreClimate March for Real Leadership in California to Stop Fracking
Oakland, Saturday, February 7, 2015
Read MoreGroundwater Monitoring in Areas of Oil and Gas
Greetings: WebEx capabilities are now included for the Expert and Public Stakeholder Meeting on Model Criteria for Groundwater Monitoring in Areas of Oil and Gas Production. The meeting is scheduled for December 11, 2014 at 8:00 a.m.. However, due to WebEx audio and attendees limitations we highly recommend that you personally attend the meeting. WebEx […]
Read MoreWebinar: Keeping Our Watersheds Frack Free
Sign up and listen and watch, “Keeping Our Watersheds Frack Free” webinar on Thursday, December 4th, 2014 at 11 am PST. From Pennsylvania to California, from Colorado to Texas, the dirty form of gas drilling known as fracking is contaminating our water and threatening our communities. Join Clean Water Network’s webinar to learn about the […]
Read MoreExpert Public Stakeholder Meeting to Develop Groundwater Monitoring Model Criteria for Oil and Gas Areas
Greetings, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is hosting a public meeting regarding the development of model criteria for groundwater monitoring related to oil and gas well stimulation treatments, as specified in Senate Bill 4 (Pavley, Statutes of 2013). LLNL is the expert that the State Water Board is working with to develop the model criteria […]
Read MoreFracking stirs debate in San Benito County | Environmental activism rises as issue comes to forefront
Santa Cruz Sentinel, April 30, 2014 In November, voters in San Benito County voters could go to the ballot on one of the first county-wide bans on fracking in California. With a population of just 55,000, the county is one of the smallest in the state. But it already has become a vanguard in the […]
Read MoreEPA Finally Asks What Fracking Toxins Are Dumped in the Ocean but Isn’t Stopping the Practice
January 10, 2014 The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is cracking down on oil companies using the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing, better known as fracking, in ocean waters off the coast of Southern California. No, the agency isn’t banning fracking or ordering a moratorium while it studies the effects of pumping large amounts of pressurized water, […]
Read MoreWhile Coastal Commission Ponders Offshore Fracking, Feds OK More of It
Friday, February 14, 2014 The California Coastal Commission, scrambling to get up to speed on recently revealed offshore fracking activity, received a briefing (pdf) from its staff Wednesday that showed, in passing, federal approval of four more previously unknown fracking permits. The new fracks, pending at Platform Gilda off the coast of Ventura County, would add to the […]
Read MoreAction to Protect Against Fracking in the North Coast
To All, Here are actions that can help stall or turn back attempts to frack in California. Larry What is the significance of access to the Eel River Basin offshore Natural Gas Hydrates? Methane (Natural Gas) Hydrates in offshore subduction zone sediments hold the world’s largest reserves of Natural Gas. More than all combined known […]
Read MoreEel River Basin Natural Gas and Fracking in Humboldt
by Tomas DiFiore Monday Dec 23rd, 2013 12:35 PM Indymedia North Coast Article There is an enormous natural gas basin off the Humboldt Coast. Exploration has already begun. I think the companies holding the leases are holding back on production contracts with drillers including frackers, and are awaiting the outcome of DOGGR Final Regulations January […]
Read MoreCommunity Environmental Legal Defense Fund
Statement on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s Ruling that Parts of Act 13 are Unconstitutional “This ruling, while welcome, does not stop fracking of Pennsylvania’s communities, nor does it recognize the right of the people of Pennsylvania to govern their own communities without state or corporate interference.” – Thomas Linzey, Esq., Executive Director To read this […]
Read MoreDates and Locations for Public Input on Fracking
The California Department of Conservation invites public input on the scope and content of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for statewide well stimulation activities at five scoping meetings in December and January. The EIR is mandated by SB 4. Once in draft form, the EIR will be circulated for specific comments on its analysis and […]
Read MoreAction on Brown’s Draft Rules for Fracking in California
To All, Recently Calif. Gov. Jerry Brown’s oil and gas officials released draft rules for fracking in the state. Tragically, though, the rules cater to industry — instead of protecting Californians from fracking, they protect fracking from Californians. Hydraulic fracking involves pumping water laced with toxic chemicals at high pressure directly underground in an attempt […]
Read MoreAction: Don’t Frack California’s Public Land
To All, Responding to our lawsuit a judge ruled that it was unlawful to lease California’s public land for oil development without first considering the risks of fracking. Shortly after the Bureau of Land Management halted all new federal oil lease sales in California for the remainder of the fiscal year. Now, also in response […]
Read MoreSan Benito County Stands Up to Fracking
Last week, one rural county in central California took a big leap forward to protect its communities by passing groundbreaking regulation governing hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) and other oil and gas extraction operations. On June 18th, the San Benito County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to amend the County’s outdated oil and gas regulation and put in place novel notice, chemical disclosure, […]
Read MoreOffshore Fracking Uproar Grows in California In Wake of Truthout Report
Thursday, 22 August 2013 Mike Ludwig, Truthout | News In the three weeks since a Truthout investigation revealed that federal regulators have approved at least two hydraulic fracturing operations in federal waters of the Santa Barbara Channel since 2009, a state commission has launched an investigation into the practice, California lawmakers have demanded a federal […]
Read MoreWhy Oil Companies Want to Drop Acid in California
RL Miller | Takepart.com No, it’s not the brown acid passed around at a 1960s rock concerts. Hydrofluoric acid is the most dangerous chemical you’ve never heard of, and it’s being trucked around California’s back roads and injected into oil wells, with virtually no oversight. How bad is it? HF acid is extremely toxic; it can immediately […]
Read MoreOil Companies Frack In Coastal Waters Off California
By JASON DEAREN and ALICIA CHANG — Aug. 3, 2013 SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Companies prospecting for oil off California’s coast have used hydraulic fracturing on at least a dozen occasions to force open cracks beneath the seabed, and now regulators are investigating whether the practice should require a separate permit and be subject to […]
Read MoreFracking on Coast Revealed
By Amanda Wallner Last week, the Associated Press reported that for several years, oil companies have been using hydraulic fracturing techniques (fracking) off the coast of California. This dangerous process combines harsh chemicals, other materials, and (usually) intense pressure to help break up rock and soil for oil and gas extraction. There are a lot […]
Read MoreNews from the Center for Biological Diversity
Exciting news: The federal government announced today it will do a major analysis of fracking risks on California’s public lands. This comes in response to a lawsuit from us and our allies, as well as an outpouring of opposition from Center for Biological Diversity activists and supporters, to the federal auction of about 2,500 acres in Monterey […]
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