Calif. Senate vote falls short for moratorium on oil fracking

[Newsjock]

Source: Los Angeles Times

The state Senate on Wednesday failed to muster the votes needed to set a moratorium on the oil drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, until a study determines that it does not pose a health risk for the public.

Sen. Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) said her bill is needed because of public concern that the injection of water and chemicals into the ground to stimulate oil production may threaten health.

She said she does not want to increase California’s dependance on foreign oil. “However, the safety of oil drilling is an environmental justice issue that I believe we should review with great scrutiny,” Mitchell said.

The bill garnered an 18-16 vote, three votes short of the majority needed for approval. The Senate granted Mitchell the right to try another vote later in the week.


Read more: http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-80339301/

[NV Whino]

1. Crap!

[mountain grammy]

2. Allow fracking in a drought stricken, high seismic activity state?

What could possibly go wrong? Greed has swallowed common sense.

[SwankyXomb]

4. That small swarm of earthquakes the LA area had two months ago?

At least one of them was centered exactly at a fracking site.

[mountain grammy]

9. Insanity at it's worst.

[Mz Pip]

3. We have a serious drought here

We don't need to be wasting water on fracking.

[tofuandbeer]

5. What else is new for California: I no longer see us as leaders.

Stand by, and watch as other states approve measures against fracking.
Then, years down the line, we'll follow suit.

[blkmusclmachine]

6. Bad, bad, bad

[kentauros]

7. Wow! That's more of an eye-opener than seeing my state rubberstamp more of the same.

Good luck to them on the next vote, though. I hope they can sway the others to change their votes for the better.

[davidpdx]

8. They are going to frack their way to an earthquake

and a large loss of life just for oil. Frack that....