EARTHblog
Montana Governor Vetos Bad Mining Bill
A heartfelt thank you to Montana's Governor Bullock, who recently took the hatchet to SB 347, a terrible bill that would have allowed mining companies to divert unlimited amounts of water from Montana rivers and streams.
The bill, which was introduced by Sen. Chas Vincent (R-Libby), was a gift, wrapped in a big red bow, for the mining industry -- particularly underground mines. To keep the underground tunnels dry during mining, the mines pump out groundwater, and lower the water table. This eliminates water from the overlying streams and rivers that rely on that groundwater for flows through the year.
Tagged with: mining, montana, gov. bullock, veto
Enact a Moratorium on Fracking and Drilling in Boulder, CO
The Oil and Gas Accountability (or OGAP), a program of Earthworks, has been working for many years on issues related to the regulation of oil and gas development at the local, state and federal levels. We recently completed a study of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission and its ability to its own enforce oil and gas regulations, and submit the following as comment on the consideration for a moratorium on fracking and drilling in Boulder.
From a health and climate impact perspective, a growing body of scientific studies indicates that communities have reason for concern about how fracking impacts the public health and safety, and climate change. These studies also raise unanswered questions about these impacts, and how they are, or are not, being dealt with.
Tagged with: fracking, colorado, health, moratorium, boulder
Mining Company Works to Remove Legal Protections for Sumatran Rainforest
What happens when more than a million hectares of protected Sumatran rainforest stand in the way of mining development? For East Asia Minerals Corporation, the answer is to remove those protections.
Tagged with: international, indonesia, biodiversity
A fracking (legal) earthquake, and the blind governor
A state court in New York issued two unanimous decisions last week upholding local bans on oil and gas activity. The court found that having a state policy on the efficient development of oil and gas resources – a policy which many states have - does not equate to an intention to require oil and gas drilling operations to occur in each and every location where the resources are present, regardless of existing land uses.
These decisions in favor of local governance – the heart of our democracy – will send earthquakes through the oil and gas industry, as they represent the biggest fissure yet in the industry’s long efforts to wall off oil and gas regulation at the state level.
Tagged with: fracking, regulation, colorado, new york, ban, hickenlooper
New report exposes the amount of ‘perpetual pollution’ from U.S. mines
This week we released a report that exposes, for the first time, the amount of contaminated water that will be generated by mining companies every year, in perpetuity.
After a lengthy review of government and company data, we discovered that 40 existing mines will generate 17-27 billion gallons of water every year, for centuries. It's a staggering amount - enough to fill 2 trillion water bottles - which would reach to the moon and back 54 times!
Tagged with: mining, water pollution, perpetual pollution
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