Struggle brewing over natural gas drilling
By Tom Baxter
Southern Political Report
January 4, 2010 — It's called fracturing, or fracking. And it could be one of the developing environmental battles of the new decade. The Tennessee Valley Authority is preparing to make wider use of the natural gas in the shale deposits which have been discovered across the South in recent years as an alternative to burning coal. TVA chief executive Tom Kilgore said the giant utility plans to buy from drillers rather than extracting the new resource itself. But while natural gas is a cleaner energy source than coal, environmentalists fear the gases used in the extraction process, called fracturing, could pollute the water table. Residents in Pennsylvania have linked the process to problems with their water supply, and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has called for a ban in fracturing in New York. -- This will be a tumultuous Congressional election year, but not in Texas. As the filing period for congressional campaigns closes today, all 32 House members are running for re-election, and almost none face serious challenges."It's a great time to be a Texan and be a member of Congress," said US Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo). -- Lots of states have enacted smoking bans, but for North Carolina, the ban which went into effect with the new year is a particular milestone. The tobacco-producing state now bans smoking in almost all restaurants and bars, excepting cigar bars and private clubs. |
