Last Friday, Maryland enacted a 2.5 year ban on fracking, making Governor Larry Hogan the first Republican governor to allow a statewide moratorium on fracking.
Earlier this year, the bill passed overwhelmingly in the state legislature with veto-proof majorities in both the House and Senate after Maryland legislators screened our film. Hogan had announced last weekend that he would not veto the bill, allowing it to automatically become law.
The fracking moratorium is the result of a large collaborative effort. More than 100 community and advocacy groups have joined together over a period of months to express their concerns about how fracking would impact their health, livelihoods, and the environment. Those who have petitioned to Governor Hogan against fracking include hundreds of Western Maryland business owners,restaurant owners, chefs, winemakers and farmers, more than 100 health professionals, and actor Edward Norton — just to name a few.
Some of the many concerns expressed include the risks fracking poses to drinking water through the vast amount of waste it produces, as well as chemical migration into aquifers, and air pollution.
In regard to the moratorium, Food & Water Watch executive director Wenonah Hauter said:
“The fact that Governor Hogan, who comes from a political party that routinely panders to the oil and gas industry, felt so much political pressure to prevent fracking from entering his state at this time, is a sign that the movement to protect against the dangers of fracking is growing stronger and gaining momentum. Protecting the health, safety and livelihoods of the people is not a partisan issue, and this moratorium is a sign that the tide is changing on fracking”
This moratorium provides two more years for officials to study the potential risks of fracking. The majority of informed Maryland citizens want lawmakers to pass a permanent fracking ban.