Interview 1054 – New World Next Week with James Evan Pilato

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BuddhaForce on 06/13/2015 at 9:39 am

Not to be a pessimist, but you only have as much local control as they want to give you….

https://www.texastribune.org/2015/06/03/more-questions-answers-denton-ponders-next-steps/

Nearly 59 percent of Denton voters supported the fracking ban last November, making the North Texas city of about 123,000 the first to outlaw the use of high-pressure water to shatter underground shale and release stored oil and gas.

The Legislature responded by passing House Bill 40, which pre-empts local bans on oil and gas exploration. Gov. Greg Abbott quickly signed the bill into law.

Vantage Energy, a natural gas operator, on Monday resumed fracking operations inside the city, effectively negating an ordinance that Denton officials say they can no longer enforce.

On the first two days of fracking’s return, police arrested protesters – three each day – who tried to block the company’s access to its work site. On Tuesday afternoon, the company said it had not decided whether to press charges for criminal trespassing.

“We recognize and appreciate the rights of all citizens to peacefully assemble and to express their opinions openly,” Seth Urruty, the company’s vice president of development, said in a prepared statement. “We are grateful to the City of Denton Police Department for helping keep the protesters safe.”

The ban’s proponents called it a last-ditch effort to address noise and toxic fumes that spew from wells just beyond their backyards, saying loopholes and previous zoning decisions rendered changes to the city’s previous drilling ordinance unenforceable.

Opponents – including most Texas regulators and lawmakers – say the policy went too far, effectively halting all drilling inside Denton and keeping mineral owners from using their property.

The Texas Oil and Gas Association — the state’s largest petroleum group — and the Texas General Land Office each filed suits against Denton just hours after the votes were tallied, calling the ban unconstitutional. Formally repealing the ban might help resolve those disputes, which, according to Mayor Chris Watts, have cost the city some $220,000 to defend.