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Vermont Becomes First State to Ban Hydraulic Fracturing

Vermont’s governor has signed into law the nation’s first ban on the natural gas drilling technique called hydraulic fracturing.  WAMC’s North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley reports…

There's no drilling currently happening in Vermont, which is believed to have little to no reserves of oil or natural gas.

Lawmakers passed a preemptive ban on the practice and Democratic Governor Peter Shumlin signed the law Wednesday in a ceremony at the Statehouse in Montpelier…

“The verdict is still not in on the effects of injecting chemicals into the groundwater in search of gas, and we just assume Vermont not be a part of that experiment.”   

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, involves the high-pressure injection of water and chemicals into the ground to split rock apart and release natural gas or oil.

Critics say fracking chemicals have polluted water supplies, but supporters say there is no proof of that.

I’m Pat Bradley, WAMC News.

Photo courtesy of Bosc d'Anjou via Flickr.