Wilkinsburg council lobbies legislators on fracking
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The Wilkinsburg council voted unanimously Wednesday night to send letters to local representatives in Harrisburg opposing legislation that would give drilling companies the ability to side-step local bans on Marcellus Shale gas drilling.
The board also agreed to draft a formal resolution to denounce the House Bill 1950 and Senate Bill 1100.
"The concern is that gas companies won't have to follow any kind of zoning when they buy property," said Councilwoman Eve Goodman, who proposed a letter to send representatives in Harrisburg. "It would let them do whatever they want."
The freshman council member added that she doesn't trust corporations to self-regulate for the good a community when corporate profits are on the line.
The council voted in July 2011 to approve a resolution that banned Marcellus Shale gas drilling from within its borders. The ban includes hydraulic fracturing -- commonly called "fracking" -- which is the process by which drilling companies inject a mixture of liquid, sand or porcelain and chemicals at high pressure into a well in order to crack the shale and help gas to flow.
First Published January 12, 2012 12:00 am
