As Trenton Rallies To Over-Ride Gov. Christie’s Veto of a Fracking Ban, The National Coverup Continues

In a Shocking Move, Obama EPA Bows to Political Pressure

EPA Abandons Wyoming Study That Showed Fracking Polluted Groundwater

Fracktivists march on Trenton Capitol (6/20/13)

Hundreds of fracktivists converged on Trenton yesterday to urge legislators to over-ride Governor Christie’s veto of legislation that would ban the processing and disposal in NJ of toxic residuals from the fracking process (photos below).

Prior to that veto, last year the Governor also vetoed a bill that would have banned fracking well drilling in NJ. The Gov.’s conditional veto of that drilling ban bill resulted in a 1 year moratorium, which expired earlier this year. There is no economically recoverable gas in NJ, so fracking well drilling in NJ is very unlikely.

But NJ is highly vulnerable to huge quantities of imports of toxic fracking wastewater and sludge residuals.

The Gov.’s veto message of the treatment & disposal ban bill fabricated a false justification that the bill unconstitutionally restricted inter-state commerce.  But the Gov.’s assertion was not backed by any credible analysis or formal legal opinion by the Attorney General or the Office of Legislative Services (OLS), the two entities that are tasked with exactly that function.

Fracking is a water intensive and dirty operation.

Five million gallons of freshwater water, laced with a chemical cocktail, are injected a mile underground and consumed for each well. Thousands of wells consume billions of gallons of water. As much as 1/3 or more of that toxic drilling fluid water returns to the surface, leaching naturally occurring radioactive compounds from rocks and soil along the way, resulting in an extremely hazardous and toxic wastewater sludge stew.

There is no treatment technology currently available that can remove these toxic contaminants, so NJ waterways – like the Delaware and Raritan Rivers, which provide drinking water for millions of NJ residents – would be polluted and drinking water put increasingly at risk from partially treated toxic tracking wastewater.

Facking has triggered protests in nearby states of NY and Pennsylvania, which overlay the gas rich Marcellus shale formation. Fracking is now occurring and will increase significantly as drilling expands, are generating huge volumes of this fracking waste. They are  having trouble finding places to dispose of hundreds of millions of gallons of toxic fracking wastewater and tons of sludge residuals.

Those states and the gas industry are looking to export their toxic mess to other states, including NJ.

Ironically, after decades of fighting – successfully – to block imports of garbage from New York City and  Philadelphia, NJ now faces a far more toxic threat from tracking waste imports.

Shockingly, some in the business community, including the Chamber of Commerce and Business and Industry Association, along with Governor Christie, would turn the clock back 50 years and actually SUPPORT importation of this toxic waste that puts your drinking water at risk. They claim imports will produce jobs and tax revenues.

Surely, it is insane to put NJ’s drinking water at risk for a handful of jobs in the toxic waste industry!

Meanwhile, as protest mount nationally, at the federal level, the whitewash continues.

Under the Bush Administration, Vice-President Cheney’s Energy Task Force pressured EPA and Congress to exempt fracking from various federal environmental laws, the so called “Halliburton Loophole”.

As public outrage grew over this loophole, at the urging of Congress, the Obama Administration, whose energy policy strongly supports fracking, was forced to respond.

The Obama EPA initially expressed an interest in conducting scientific studies of the true impacts and risks of fracking. Those EPA studies have been long delayed.

Yesterday, we learned that EPA science has again been compromised by the gas  industry and politics.

In a shocking move, EPA abandoned a study of fracking in Wyoming that documented pollution of groundwater and drinking water wells.

EPA will hand the study off to the State of Wyoming. Like neighboring Pennsylvania, Wyoming politicians and regulators support fracking and have criticized the EPA study. The Wyoming state study will be funded by the gas industry. As reported by Bloomberg (red the whole article here):

Fracking Pollution Probe in Wyoming Cast in Doubt by EPA

The only finding by U.S. regulators of water contamination from fracking was thrown into doubt yesterday when the federal government halted its investigation and handed the probe over to the State of Wyoming.

State officials will now investigate the integrity of gas wells owned by Encana Corp. (ECA) near 14 domestic water wells in Pavillion, Wyoming, while the Environmental Protection Agency stops further work on its draft report from 2011, which linked groundwater woes to hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, for natural gas. While EPA said it stands by its data, that preliminary finding is now effectively abandoned.

Frack that shit!

Shamefully, EPA is in the tank for the gas industry.

EPA again has confirmed what Tim DeChristopher (AKA “Bidder 70”) has said, the game is rigged, it’s time to take the field.

The way the environmental movement has been for the past thirty years, it’s like a football game. And there are some players on the field that are fighting it out, but most of the people in the stadium are up in the stands. Most of them just paid their money at the door, and now they’re just yelling and screaming, and it’s not working. Our team is getting slaughtered. The refs have been paid off, and the other side is playing with dirty tricks. And so it’s no longer acceptable for us to stay in the stands. It’s time to rush the field, and it’s time to stop the game

Why we fight - the future of our kids. Let's hear it for the stroller brigades!

"No Fracking Waste in the Garden State" was the demand

taking it to the State House steps. Senator Gordon speaks to crowd in support of override.

Assemblywoman Spencer, Chair of the Environment Committee, speaks to crowd in support of over-ride

Senator Gordon (speaking) - Jim Walsh, Food & Water Watch (R), Jeff Tittel Sierra Club (L), Tracy Carlucchio, Delaware Riverkeeper Network (between Tittel and Gordon)

clear message

Good question

oil and gas lobbyists gawk out the windows and hide behind their desks in State Street offices, as protesters take to the capitol steps