The fight against hydraulic fracturing has recently ratcheted up. On November 5, one town in Ohio and three in Colorado, passed ballot measures designed to ban or temporarily halt hydraulic fracturing--the brief (3-5 day) phase, often referred to as " fracking" --that is essential to the advanced oil-and-gas extraction processes that have given America
the lead in global energy production. A fourth Colorado town awaits a recount. Initial election results showed the moratorium in Broomfield, Co--failed by 13 votes. However, on November 13, after all the overseas, military, provisional and other outstanding ballots were counted, it had
passed by 17 votes. A margin of less than 0.5 percent triggers an automatic recount--leaving the final outcome currently unknown. In Bowling Green and Youngstown, Ohio, the opposite happened. Similar proposed bans against fracking were defeated.
- Tuesday, November 19, 2013