Empire Center for New York State Policy / by Diana Furchtgott-Roth & Andrew Gray http://bit.ly/13YAXOx [Gannett Press Connect] A new report from a conservative think tank says income levels would grow more rapidly upstate if New York allows hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale. The report from the Empire Center for New York State Policy found … Continue reading »
Tagged with States …
Hydrofracking: State Preemption, Local Power, and Cooperative Governance
Case Western Reserve Law Review ( 2013, v63 n4 ) / by John R. Nolon and Steven E. Gavin http://bit.ly/10Co1ts Advocates for the gas drilling technology known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, argue that it will bring significant economic benefits to the private and public s ectors. Its opponents dispute these claims and point to significant environmental and public health risks associated with fracking—risks … Continue reading »
Employment and Wage Changes in Oil-producing Counties in the Bakken Formation, 2007–2011
US Bureau of Labor Statistics Beyond the Numbers: Employment and Unemployment (April 2013, vol. 2, no. 11) / by Paul Ferree and Peter W. Smith http://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-2/employment-wages-bakken-shale-region.htm The Bakken Formation is an oil-producing shale formation underneath North Dakota, Montana, and parts of Canada. In recent years, horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing techniques, combined with higher prices for … Continue reading »
H.R. 739, Chesapeake Bay Accountability and Recovery Act of 2013
Congressional Budget Office http://www.cbo.gov/publication/44118 [Summary] As ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on April 24, 2013 H.R. 739 would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop, no later than one year after the bill’s enactment, a management plan for the Chesapeake Bay Program and restoration activities related to the bay. EPA … Continue reading »
Hydraulic Fracturing and Water Stress: Growing Competitive Pressures for Water
Ceres / by Monika Freyman and Ryan Salmon http://bit.ly/18ujgXJ %5BAvailable for free with registration] A new Ceres research paper on water use in hydraulic fracturing operations shows that a significant portion of this activity is happening in water stressed regions of the United States, most prominently Texas and Colorado, which are both in the midst of prolonged … Continue reading »
2010 Washington Metropolitan Area Water Supply Reliability Study Part 2: Potential Impacts of Climate Change
Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin / by S.N. Ahmed, K.R. Bencala and C. L. Schultz http://www.potomacriver.org/2012/publicationspdf/ICPRB13-07.pdf (full report) http://bit.ly/11Wft4Q (fact sheet) [Washington Post] A new study finds climate change could cut stream flows in the Potomac River basin, a major source of drinking water in the Washington region. The study found by 2040 climate change could cut stream flows 35 … Continue reading »
Stress Relief: Prescriptions for a Healthier Delta Ecosystem
Public Policy Institute of California / by Ellen Hanak et al. http://www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=1051 California is at a critical juncture on policy for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. This report summarizes the results of a wide-ranging study of cost-effective ways to improve the health of the Delta ecosystem. It highlights the need for science-based, integrated management of the … Continue reading »
Legal Fractures in Chemical Disclosure Laws: Why the Voluntary Chemical Disclosure Registry FracFocus Fails as a Regulatory Compliance Tool
Harvard Law School, Environmental Law School / by Kate Konschnik, with Margaret Holden and Alexa Shasteen http://hvrd.me/17gbfam [Business Week] FracFocus, the website used by Exxon Mobil Corp. and other energy companies to disclose chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, fails as a compliance tool for the 11 states that rely on it, a Harvard Law School … Continue reading »
Memorandum of Understanding on the Development of Alaska’s Vast Unconventional Energy Resources
US Dept. of Energy | Alaska State Dept. of Natural Resources http://1.usa.gov/Z6k04M [From DOE Press Release] Development of potentially vast and important unconventional energy resources in Alaska – including viscous oil and methane hydrates – could be accelerated under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed today by the state’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the … Continue reading »
Climate Change Impacts to Natural Resources in South Carolina
South Carolina Dept. of Natural Resources http://www.dnr.sc.gov/pubs/CCINatResReport.pdf [The State] …The report says South Carolina should brace for the effects of global warming and begin planning for those changes. A warmer climate could lead to the invasion of exotic species from Florida, the death of salt marshes, increased diseases in wildlife and flooding that could swamp … Continue reading »
