Geologists in Ohio have for the first time linked earthquakes in a geologic formation deep under the Appalachians to hydraulic fracturing, leading the state to issue new permit conditions Friday in certain areas that are among the nation's strictest.
Ohio environmentalists, Dems protest fracking
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Almost 200 people opposed to a new method of drilling for natural resources have greeted returning state lawmakers with a Statehouse protest.
No Frack Ohio on Tuesday called on legislators to ban on what's called fracking, a process that blasts pressurized water, sand and chemicals underground to release gas and oil reserves. The group also wants a ban on deep injection wells that hold drilling wastewater.
Gov. John Kasich halted wastewater injection at five Youngstown area wells after 11 earthquakes hit the area. However, he says he doesn't want concerns over wastewater disposal to hinder the Ohio jobs promised by shale drilling.
State natural resources officials note dozens of similar injection wells have operated around Ohio for decades without problems. They plan to attend a community forum Wednesday in Youngstown.
Fracking Coverage
Shell, Europe's largest oil company, will stop drilling for oil in Alaska this year as it cuts back on investments and tries to reverse a steep drop in earnings.
A list of toxic chemicals used by Ohio shale drillers must be made available locally to governments, first responders and residents under a new state directive.
Amish communities in Ohio and Pennsylvania are debating a temptation -- the large cash royalties that can come with the boom in oil and gas drilling from the technology known as fracking.
A northeast Ohio businessman and one of his employees have pleaded not guilty to charges alleging they violated the Clean Water Act by repeatedly dumping gas-drilling wastewater into a storm sewer.
Prosecutors are charging a northeast Ohio man with violating the federal Clean Water Act after at least 20,000 gallons of gas-drilling waste was dumped into a river tributary.
Contaminated wastes from a boom in oil and natural gas drilling would face new testing, reporting and tracking requirements before going to Ohio landfills under proposal developed by three state agencies over the past several months.
The new movie "Promised Land" digs into the fierce national debate over fracking, the technique that's generated a boom in U.S. natural gas production while also stoking controversy.
Anti-drilling demonstrators say a new movie is inspiring a protest in Youngstown, where deep injection of wastewater from hydraulic fracturing was linked to a series of earthquakes.