Plans to export US natural gas stir debate
Source: AP-Excite
By MATTHEW DALY
WASHINGTON (AP) - A domestic natural gas boom already has lowered U.S. energy prices while stoking fears of environmental disaster. Now U.S. producers are poised to ship vast quantities of gas overseas as energy companies seek permits for proposed export projects that could set off a renewed frenzy of fracking.
Expanded drilling is unlocking enormous reserves of crude oil and natural gas, offering the potential of moving the country closer to its decades-long quest for energy independence. Yet as the industry looks to profit from foreign markets, there is the specter of higher prices at home and increased manufacturing costs for products from plastics to fertilizers.
Companies such as Exxon Mobil and Sempra Energy (SRE) are seeking federal permits for more than 20 export projects that could handle as much as 29 billion cubic feet of natural gas a day.
If approved, the resulting export boom could lead to further increases in hydraulic fracturing, a drilling technique also known as fracking. It has allowed companies to gain access to huge stores of natural gas underneath states from Colorado to New York, but raised widespread concerns about alleged groundwater contamination and even earthquakes.
FULL story at link.
Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20130512/DA67O2G82.html
This June 13, 2003 file photo shows pipelines running from the offshore docking station to four liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanks at the Dominion Resources Inc. Liquefied Natural Gas facility in Cove Point, Md. A domestic natural gas boom already has lowered U.S. energy prices while stoking fears of environmental disaster. Now U.S. producers are poised to ship vast quantities of gas overseas as energy companies seek permits for proposed export projects that could set off a renewed frenzy of fracking. (AP Photo/Matt Houston, File)
= new reply since forum marked as read
Please sign at the link.
http://therainforestsite.greatergood.com/clickToGive/trs/petition/EarthJustice-Fracking?Origin=ETE_051013_EarthJustice-Fracking_F
Dear President Obama,
During your State of the Union speech, I was glad to hear your promise that drilling and fracking for natural gas would happen "without putting the health and safety of our citizens at risk."
As the Department of the Interior and Environmental Protection Agency prepare to issue regulations on fracking chemical disclosure, I am writing you to remind you of this promise.
Unfortunately, the proposed DOI rule regarding fracking on public lands does not require fracking companies to disclose chemicals before they are pumped into the ground. In its final rule, your administration must require pre-fracking chemical disclosure — a critical measure that would give nearby communities time to test and monitor water supplies for any fracking-related water pollution.
Keeping your promise to the American public is not only the right thing to do. It's the smart thing to do. The public is rightfully skeptical of an industry that demands so much secrecy. And if your administration's rules fail to make available critical information that will protect public health, it will only further undermine public confidence in this industry.
I know the oil and gas industry has been pressuring you to propose and finalize weakened rules. But I am counting on you to make the right decision.
?cb=1368213048416
