Denton Bans Fracking, But Challenges Almost Certain
A North Texas town on Tuesday became the state’s first to ban hydraulic fracturing, setting up a high-profile property rights clash likely to be fought in courtrooms and the Legislature.
Nearly 59 percent of voters in Denton, which sits on the edge of gas-rich Barnett Shale, approved a measure banning hydraulic fracturing, or fracking — the method of oil and gas extraction that has led to a domestic energy boom.
Proponents called the measure a last-ditch effort to address noise and toxic fumes that spew from wells just beyond their backyards, after loopholes and previous zoning decisions rendered changes to ...
Comments (1)
Brian Hardwick
"The United States constitution actually prevents any government entity, whether it's the state or local government, from imposing a flat ban because the flat ban may in fact trigger a protection in the United States constitution called the takings clause, which essentially prevents a government from taking private property, that is to say the oil and gas, without paying just compensation."
- Jan Laitos, professor of law at University of Denver Law School, explaining to the BBC why bans imposed on hydraulic fracturing and drilling by U.S. municipalities are likely to run afoul of the law and could result in local governments having to pay out millions in damages.
Brian Hardwick Regal Energy
www.regalenergy.com