On March 24, the Maryland House of Delegates passed legislation that would enact a three-year statewide moratorium on fracking. This comes following an event where we recently partnered with Food & Water Watch to meet with a group of Maryland state legislators for a preview screening of clips from Dear President Obama, and received a very warm welcome from many concerned lawmakers.
Our Health and Communities Act (HB449), sponsored by Del. David Frasier-Hidalgo, would prohibit the Maryland Department of the Environment from issuing permits for fracking until 2018 while a panel of experts study the environmental and public health risks associated with the practice.
Maryland is currently embroiled in a debate over whether or not to allow fracking. Governor Larry Hogan has said that he believes that fracking can be done safely, and he wants to see Western Maryland benefit from the shale gas drilling boom that has swept neighboring states such as Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Opponents to fracking want to see Maryland follow in New York’s footsteps, enacting a statewide fracking ban. In addition to the negative impact on health and the environment, opponents claim that fracking would hurt tourism and outdoor recreation–two pillars of the local economy.
The Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee is hearing bills that would either ban fracking outright (SB29) or put an eight-year moratorium on drilling permits (SB409). The Maryland Department of the Environment is considering the adoption of regulations that would allow fracking, ending a 3 ½ -year de facto moratorium while the state studied the issue.
While the adoption of a fracking moratorium is progress, the risk remains that fracking will be approved once the study is complete. The idea that fracking is “safe” so long as it is regulated is a dangerous one. New York’s recent ban on fracking came following a moratorium, however, so our hope for Maryland and other states remains.
Contact us if you’d like to request a screening in your state, and together we can work to change the world!