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Subscribe to RSSAn MSNBC panel discusses President Obama's energy policies, including fracking.
The Obama administration on Wednesday announced long-awaited air pollution rules for the controversial natural gas drilling technique known as fracking, but surprised environmentalists by saying the rules would not be immediately enforced but instead phased in over more than two years.
"Pleased" with the rules but "disappointed" by the delay was how the Natural Resources Defense Council reacted to the announcement by the Environmental Protection Agency.
"We are disappointed that EPA has allowed industry until 2015 for full compliance," NRDC clean air analyst David Doniger told msnbc.com.
"It should not take that long to build more of the truck-mounted rigs that can capture these gases and put them into the pipelines to be sold at a profit instead of leaked into our air," he added, referring to the fact that some producers already do that in the few critical days between when a well is drilled and when it starts producing.
The EPA insisted the rules were not being delayed but phased in. "There will be interim requirements," a spokesperson told msnbc.com.
Industry was supportive of the change.
"EPA has made some improvements in the rules," Howard Feldman, a policy staffer at the American Petroleum Institute, said in a statement.
The American Lung Association was quick to tout the rules' health benefits.
"Natural gas production is expanding into highly populated areas of the country," Al Rizzo, its chairman, said in a statement. "We have seen irrefutable evidence of serious threats to human health from air pollutants emitted during oil and natural gas production, including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including air toxics such as benzene and formaldehyde, as well as increasing levels of ozone and particulate matter.
"These pollutants can worsen asthma, cause heart attacks, and harm the circulatory, respiratory, nervous, and other essential and vital life systems. They are also linked to cancer, developmental disorders, and even premature death," he added. "People most at risk of harm from breathing these air pollutants will benefit the most from these standards, including: infants, children and teenagers; older adults; pregnant women; people with asthma and other lung diseases; people with cardiovascular disease; diabetics; people with low incomes; and healthy adults who work or exercise outdoors."
Doniger said he hoped that EPA incentives in the new standards would "encourage drilling firms to do the right thing before 2015."
The EPA noted that President Barack Obama last week issued an executive order directing agencies to streamline natural gas development. "The rule released today received important interagency feedback and provides industry flexibilities," it added in its announcement. "Based on new data provided during the public comment period, the final rule establishes a phase-in period that will ensure emissions reduction technology is broadly available."
A senior administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that "we believe that industry was correct in that we needed to have a ramp-up period."
The EPA proposed the rules last July, seeking for the first time to cut emissions of smog-forming compounds from fracked wells. The idea is to eventually curb those by 95 percent. In addition, the rules would cut those emissions a further 25 percent across traditional oil and gas wells, which already have emissions constraints.
A CNBC panel discusses new evidence that certain drilling can trigger earthquakes.
In fracking, large amounts of sand and water laced with chemicals are blasted deep underground to free natural gas and oil. Separate issues with fracking are whether it poses a danger to aquifers and whether wastewater from the process is triggering small earthquakes.
The EPA is studying potential health impacts to water supplies, while the U.S. Geological Survey is looking at the quake concerns.
More content from msnbc.com and NBC News:
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Better late than never.
It appears even the boys at the EPA aren't above a little greasing.
Sorry, but here's one Pennsyltuckian that had hoped for sooner rather than later.
Guess we voters, U.S. citizens don't fork over enough money to any representative to make them look at our issues rather than immediately work for the big money interests.
Translation; Obama has decided that the natural gas prices aren't nearly high enough to make his algae plan and his other green fantasies look good.
Obama can't afford to increase gas prices any more during an election year.
Wet...This will help keep natural gas prices low.
Glory...This isnt about gasoline.
Cant you people give the guy a break ... it is an election year...He will have "more flexibility after the election"...Then you can continue your dance on the Corpse of America
Well something is better than nothing. I just wish a democrat had challenged the jackass for the nomination. I will vote for him but only because letting a republican in would be the downfall of the country. His legacy will be he got re-elected because he is less dangerous than the other SOB.
If he didnt "phase in" this plan, republicans would have been crying of being over regulated and standing in the way of energy production. I see this as a compromise for all sides. But that is just me, who lives in an area where fraking is not performed and even though i have seen it on tv, i cannot relate to someone who has lived in their homes for 30+ years and can now hold a lighter to water coming out of their kitchen faucet and produce a fire ball.
The next step would be to make the industry tell the American ppl what exactly are the materials they are pumping into the ground. which last i heard, the industry is under no legal obligation to reveal
Ron...Thats how I always vote. The whole RULING CLASS is corrupt. Their Superpacs and the one percenters that own them have corrupted them absolutely.
I grew up in a small town in the mid-west and there was natural gas in the town water well. We could always turn on the water, light a match, and there would be a flame above and a stream of water below! But the water tasted great, had natural fluoride, so no cavities, and strong bones to this day!!!!
Fracking has been practiced for 100 years. It is not that big of a problem. Being without energy is a bigger problem. Waht you are witnessing is many years of studying how to shut down the natural gas industry to make way for "Green" technologies that cost far more.
Mary, your personal health by itself does not count as scientific evidence, although it's great that you are in great health.
DBAkron, What does “It is not that big of a problem” mean? What is your evidence that it has been occurring for 100 years? Since you mention cost, obviously this is an important aspect of the issue to you—how much does that matter to you? Does anything else matter—that fracking is exempt from the US Safe Drinking Water Act, for instance, or that there is yet to be full disclosure of the chemicals that are used?
obama cant touch ground water as that was signed under bush to make sure the epa nuts couldn't touch it. This is a way to get it at again.
Guy,
Fracking is used to get petroleum from the ground as well. Currently most fracking is used to get petroleum out of the ground, the natural gas that comes with it is a by product that due to its abundance using fracking is not worth that much anymore. If you read above the issue is about them just letting that natural gas escape into the atmosphere or use special rigs that are very expensive to capture the extra natural gas that will not turn enough of a profit to pay for the equipment and thus the equipments cost will have to be passed on to the petroleum which is refined for gas.
So yes this is something that affects this countries oil supply and not just its natural gas supply.
Just goes to show Big Oil and Big Money dont breath that air. Just us commoners.
They need to drill a few wells on the WH lawn and in front of the Capital while its in session but that would interfere with our ruling class.
What the frack was he thinking,,,,Sorry, just couldn't resist,,,,,
omega1 - that was a pun of galactica proportions.
little disappointing that they have 2 years and even more disappointed that this doesn't address the poisined water issue...but I guess that's an election year casualty...of course, it goes without saying that should a repugnican win the WH in Nov. (may God forbid) , these rules will go out the window before they are ever enforced. Want clean air and water???Better not vote (R)
Is anyone really surprised? I'm always defending the POTUS against hate when there are so many valid issues with him. Personally I'm tired of his dogged cowardice. The whole idea of being on the democratic ticket is being progressive with basic common sense. If the nation wanted a blue dog democrat aka a fake dem then they would have elected one.
The people do not like fake good ol boys or fake dems. In the midterms the teabaggers won all those seats because they knocked off blue dog dems. For all the new coverage of how the teaparty did something spectacular, they only won 3 seats that were held by progressives. Noone seems to be able to see this blatant fact.
So now we have a blue dog dem trying to woo real progressives and a fake teabagger trying to woo the ultraconservative nuts. What the heck is wrong with this picture?
Obama's presidency is going to be judged by how he avoided a depression. This is true. But it will also be remembered by how he ran as one thing but governed as another. Another day - another capitualtion!!
Millions did not vote in the midterms and we got the tea party. We see how that's going. Now the POTUS keep' giving people more reasons to skip the election this year.
Another WTF... Agreed my enthusiasm has been slapped down again... what the frack... might have to delay my voting this year.
Thomas - the water is tested before, during, and after Fracking. The only fracking poisioned water you will find is when the driller fails to follow the law by not containing or disposing of fracking fluids.
The only loss of water that has occured is from drillers drilling supply wells that lower the water table because of the huge amounts of water they can require to do fracking.
Many communities have coal mine tunnels that release methane and already have caused a higher than normal amount of gas in water. I know, I came from the mine areas of western PA. It is common to have a higher amount of methane in well water for those reasons.
The Colorado Fracking that is triggering these regulations had old mine in the area. Tests on the ground water before the fracking showed that the methane in the water was already high and that the source was the mine.
Since the truth was advertised, they had to find another reason to shut it down. This EPA is nothing more than a Salem witch trial.
Maybe americanselect.org can come up with a decent alternative. I just can't support this guy. Didn't like him in the first place for being an empty suit with no experience, and I certainly didn't appreciate his machine dumping all over the Clintons. Didn't vote for him, won't vote for him. How is this guy any better than Romney?
These seem like reasonable rules with a reasonable time to comply. If they were mandated immediately, only large firms, who have the required technology or capital to invest in it could play. This way smaller organizations can produce now and use the proceeds to buy the new equipment as the old wears out.
If the rules were immediate all non-compliant existing machinery would be obsolete and have to be sold over seas at a loss, where the pollutants would be releases into the atmosphere anyway.
I guess it's reasonable for your kids to breathe polluted air for a few more years, eh? Anything's ok as long as it doesn't cost a CEO his pay raise, right?
jj is right. If you bother to read the article BEFORE jumping to conclusions, you'll notice that some of the companies (the biggest and wealthiest, I would assume) are already capturing these gasses and making a profit with them. The rest (the minor players) are not, and the special trucks that will do the capturing have to be built. I don't care who you are or how much money you have, you cannot get specialized equipment created overnight. Maybe one company (the first to order) could get one built in a week or two (I'm guessing here, because I don't know how complicated this technology is) but how about the waiting list for everybody else? After all, if you order a special order car from an auto dealer, how long does it take to get it? (I don't know that either...I've never ordered one)
Additionally, other rules that CAN be implemented quickly are being implemented.
Two different schools of thought, here.
One school expects the government to take care of everything and buy them every thing and are unconcerned about the price of electricity going up 30% and more industry leaving the USA daily.
The other school of thought is the group, that knows they will be the one that pays for these green fantasies and knows that they will force more industry offshore and leave them with less wages.
The first group is eminently satisfied with the way this administration is attempting to make a service economy out of the USA, they don't expect it to cost them anything.
The second group isn't all that thrilled with what is going on in the USA today.
There is less patience with this administration and the people supporting them, daily.
Best government the industrial complex, the wealthy, special interests, LARGE corporations and Wall Street can buy. Welcome to the US where corporations are people, the people are pawns and politicians are all beholden to the wealthy.
Sadly you are correct.
Don't forget, money is also speech here. The most activist SCOTUS is US history says so.
You are upset that unions and media corporations get to sway people with money and influence? Liberals have been doing that long before this court allowed others to join in.
Watermoon, campaign contributions from unions are COMPLETELY eclipsed by money from the wealthy, LARGE corporations and industry sponsored/owned/operated groups (PACS, SuperPACs, ALEC, etc.). The MYTH, I REPEAT, myth that the media is liberal is constantly repeated but never corroborated. AM radio is OWNED by right wing idiots like limbaugh (What happened to Air America?) and the major media outlets are owned by LARGE corporations or, by proxy, wealthy individuals (CBS owned by Sumner by proxy, FOX owned by Murdoch by proxy, GE owns NBC, Walt Disney by ABC, Time Warner owns CNN). This is why stories about financial malfeasance by banks, environmental criminality by FOSSIL FUEL companies (MSNBC not talking about malformed shrimp in the gulf), Faux News lying and speaking mistruths about ANYTHING Democratic or liberal, CNN just plain retarded and ABC trying not to be left out of the BS in the main stream media.)
Do some reading and look at opposing views in order to better prove your own argument. Google the DIALECTIC. THINK FOR YOURSELF!@!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What about anti-earthquake regulations!? Earthquakes can destroy property and kill people much more quickly than air pollution.
Idiot. Yes...you are an idiot. Collapse this. I don't care. You idiot.
Such hatred - how can you call yourself "Human?"
Sorry, but in this case his argument is valid.
Tornadoes have cause untold suffering to people iin Kansas and Oklahoma and to this date out "compassionate" leader has not even mentioned them. Every president in the past would visit the destroyed areas and lead the relief effort but this uncaring bastard is campaigning and fundraising in Michigan and hasn't even mentioned them. He is the most divisive hateful man that ever held that position and he must be sent packing in November!
Where is the media outrage that was heaped on Bush when he wasn't allowed to send FEMA in by that silly governor and thus took 36 hours to get them federal aid?? Alabama last year, Dallas a few months ago, and now these states - and still no visits and no FEMA! And no coverage by the lame-stream media that spreads propaganda as news.
Morlack, nosferatu, etc... There is just one small difference between comparing earthquakes, tornadoes, tsunamis, wildfires started by nature and hurricanes with air pollution from fossil fuels industry. The DIFFERENCE is that air pollution from fracking can be prevented while natural disasters CAN"T. That is unless you found a way to control the weather, tectonic plate and the oceans.
Watermoon... Nice attempt to deflect from the original issue. This is NOT about Obama but rather the willful ignorance and negligence of the fracking community and their affect on local resources and the environment.
AMF
Gotta wait and see if the check clears before declaring it safe.
no fracking way
The EPA needs to ban volcanoes, too. Much bigger source (by multiples) of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), including air toxics such as benzene and formaldehyde, as well as increasing levels of ozone and particulate matter...
Don't forget forest fires! Environmentalists won't allow roads in the wilderness which would greatly mitigate them by allowing firefighters quicker access as well as to act as fire breaks. This is one more assault on the poor and middle class by the Obama administration since it will drive up energy and gasoline costs as wel as costs of every commodity that requires transportation to the market. It is already happening but he lies and says inflation is below 2% while neglecting to add that food and energy costs are not included since they are too "volatile." We who drive and shop know that he lies through his teeth!
So Rob & Watermoon, you want to suffer ALL of the above, all at once, eh?
Nice one. Try thinking first next time.
kenpat,
This was a commentary on relative volume and materiality. But I see it completely eluded you.
Hey Rob,
The poor guy does the best he can. I am still trying to figure out what his point is? It seems fine that the environmentalists cause much more CO2 with their restrictions on roads in forests and that they cause terrible hardship on the poor and middle class with their forcing energy and food prices to soar, but god help us, don't allow people to drill for oil or drive a car. Accept the money from the environmental lobby and to hell with the people!
So, are you saying that because nature can cause even bigger environmental disasters than the ones our corporate interests are able to cause, we should take a "who cares?" attitude about the pollution, health hazards, and crummy air caused by those who prefer greed over ethics?
JW-
No, it's about opportunity cost. Where's the greatest bang for the buck? You could spend billions on the environment and have very little to show for it, or you could spend the same on finding a cure for cancer or (name your crusade). There are plenty of noble causes out there, any one of which you could argue, "...but how can we afford not to?" Problem is, there's not an unlimited supply of capital with which to address those causes...
Rob-But that's one of the things the government can help do for a society--ensure that we don't dump toxins on people's houses--or, in this case in our streams, drinking water, and air. Expecting the market to regulate itself is a dream that hardly every comes true, because markets aren't driven by concern for people's well-being.
So what is your point about volcanoes? Are you really saying go ahead and dump toxins anywhere because nature can sometimes do worse (although most people don't live by volcanoes and/or move away from them before eruption)?
Treat the earth well.
It was not given to you by your parents,
it was loaned to you by your children.
We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors,
we borrow it from our Children.
Ancient Indian Proverbs:
When all the trees have been cut down,
when all the animals have been hunted,
when all the waters are polluted,
when all the air is unsafe to breathe,
only then will you discover you cannot eat money.
Cree Prophecy
I do not think the measure of a civilization
is how tall its buildings of concrete are,
But rather how well its people have learned to relate
to their environment and fellow man.
Sun Bear of the Chippewa Tribe
Thanksgiving Grace:
We return thanks to our mother, the earth, which sustains us.
We return thanks to the rivers and streams, which supply us with water.
We return thanks to all herbs, which furnish medicines for the cure of our diseases.
We return thanks to the moon and stars, which have given to us their light when the sun was gone.
We return thanks to the sun, that has looked upon the earth with a beneficent eye.
Lastly, we return thanks to the Great Spirit, in Whom is embodied all goodness, and Who directs all things for the good of Her children.
Iroquois
Give us hearts to understand;
Never to take from creation's beauty more than we give; never to destroy wantonly for the furtherance of greed;
Never to deny to give our hands for the building of earth's beauty; never to take from her what we cannot use.
Give us hearts to understand That to destroy earth's music is to create confusion; that to wreck her appearance is to blind us to beauty; That to callously pollute her fragrance is to make a house of stench; that as we care for her she will care for us.
We have forgotten who we are. We have sought only our own security. We have exploited simply for our own ends. We have distorted our knowledge. We have abused our power.
Great Spirit, whose dry lands thirst, Help us to find the way to refresh your lands.
Great Spirit, whose waters are choked with debris and pollution, help us to find the way to cleanse your waters.
Great Spirit, whose beautiful earth grows ugly with misuse, help us to find the way to restore beauty to your handiwork.
Great Spirit, whose creatures are being destroyed, help us to find a way to replenish them.
Great Spirit, whose gifts to us are being lost in selfishness and corruption, help us to find the way to restore our humanity.
Oh, Great Spirit, whose voice I hear in the wind, whose breath gives life to the world, hear me;
I need your strength and wisdom. May I walk in Beauty upon your Lands, Breath in your Air, Swim in your Waters.
Native American Prayer.
Do you not see the fallacy in modern thought?
Fracking Geology: (And you thought Etch-a-Sketch made bad art (or computers are so, so, so useful))
||_------//------_||_-----------//-------_||_-------//--_||_-//-_
||_-----//-------_||_----------//--------_||_------//---_||_-//-_
||_----//--------_||_---------//---------_||_-----//----_||_-//-_
||_---//---------_||_--------//----------_||_----//-----_||_-//-_
||_--//----------_||_-------//-----------_||_---//------_||_-//-_
||_-//-----------_||_------//------------_||_--//-------_||_-//-_
================^================-^=======>
||_//------------_||_-----//-------------_||_-//--------_||_-//-_
The verticals || represents natural fractures in the rock, seen everywhere on the surface but know to exists below ground.
The horizontals == represents the sideways drilling, through the fractures and through areas of high and low pressure gas.
The slants // represents more fractures not necessary vertical, but the earth is filled these sorts of fractures.
The dashes -- show gas formation.
Now instead of noxious chemicals we used good old fashioned water and the tiny silicon spears used to wedge the rock open.
The ^ indicates leaks from the horizontal drill hole into the natural cracks, where wanted venting takes place, oops.
Now we drill into a series of gas reservoirs --, of differing pressures, connecting the dots, into a general gas supply that without fracking would last 40 years.
We then fract successfully and don't have leaks that cannot be cemented, no massive losses when the earth fractures moves, no pollution since we're using water.
The prospects are good, we get gas faster, but then it only lasts 5 years, before depletion.
What can go wrong? The cracks can open the various pockets could pool and the vent through the cracks and all these problems start only after an earthquake.
So all the greenhouse gases (CH4), could vent at once, no one would be measuring, the well would be useless.
All the drilling expenses are charges as losses by the bankrupt drilling company, with only the equity drilling rig leasing company taking a profit.
The public does not know that the Earth is fractured, and cannot see what the underground looks like, and it is secret information to know anything about the success of failure of the drilling operation, in spite of the fact that we have nearly 500,000 wells drilled. But we're looking for investors.
If you could see all the data, then you could see which of the 1/1000 wells where fracking can proceed. Without giving license to attempt this expensive operational will where could cause more harm than good.
It takes a number of financial jumps through the hoops to escape the routine consequences of bankruptcy, which are another tool to limit liability.
The insurance business should be very interested, to issue policies for a sure thing, Eh, but would you really expect drilling companies, to purchase insurance against pollution, civil liability where payouts are unknown. Oddly enough insurance companies like a sure thing and won't issue policies.
To get investor dollars, the risks have to be hidden, or avoidable, or kept unknown or have some means of being offset by tax deductions, future earnings and on and on to be left as the orphan at the door step of government.
Now imagine no taxes on corporations, no chance to leave the problem at governments door step, and to wipe clean any liability for any reason for risks and hazards, no need for precautions, testing or monitoring. Yes corporations are indeed people and should be trusted for the future of the planet, knowing that they will then own it.
Good lord! Bad enough that he won't allow drilling on public lands but now he is going to stop drilling on private lands by instituting excessive regulations on this process.
Of course the environmentalists lie about the effect the process has on the environment and as you can see by the posts here their minions believe every word!
November is going to be crucial. Obama is waiting two years because - as he told that Russian minister, after he is re-elected he can do whatever he wants since the people will no longer have any say!
wow
More drilling? Why not uncap all those thousands of "Producing" wells that are now capped. Slow down the selling of natural gas and petroleum products overseas so that they can be sold here. Yes. The oil companies are, indeed, "rationing" their products to the average citizen here because they can keep the prices high here.
Found your Lefty Manifesto, eh?
You people are boring.
ANYTHING is allowed to ensure the 98 lb soccer moms can still tool around in their 5ooo pound Humvee and network on the cell phone. It's the American Waee
I keep forgetting about the Obama war on moms who stay home to raise their family. They after all deserve no breaks since they haven't worked a day in their lives.
wow
Those TV ads touting high miles per gallon are not worth a plugged nickle at the speeds actually driven by most people. Actually to gain these rating, the drivers doing the driving were driving at reduced speeds. Yet these same ads portray the ads' drivers at high speeds, zoom, zoom.
PS. For those complaining about the cost of gasoline, try taking your lead foot off the gas pedal. Reduce your speed and you will see an immediate improvement in your gas mileage. Fact. Works EVERY TIME.
Well, you hit it right on the head, Watermoon. I lie every chance I get about the enviroment, just to try to sway the poor and uneducated.
Of course, I also don't have to believe a word that comes out of your piehole...
Coming from you that is such a compliment. Thank you so much.
Watermoon-please let us know when your tap water will ignite.I'll represent you in court.
World Hold On!! Just a little longer....
watch?v= 82vXva0J7Ps
Remove spaces and hear Bob Sinclar - World Hold on!!
Drillllll Babbbbbbbyyyyy Drilllllllllllll Dammmiiittttttttt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Fk all you job killing epa dumbasses. Theres more pollution coming from natural disasters. You people do know this all comes from inside the planet??
EPA said it was about air pollution - not water. Get someone to read the article to you. This is not about pollution at all or our president would act on it now and not wait until after the elections. It is about his Green agenda and payback to the environmental lobby. He is torn right now since forcing the drilling on private lands to cease will anger his other puppeteer group - the unions. It is the same thing that had made him want to delay the decision on the pipeline before he was forced to commit.
Watermoon, right on!
President Obama needs every vote he can hornswoogle from the electorate without doing anything constructive for the USA. The EPA should be helping, not hindering US energy development.
Anybody But Obama in 2013
Hey Joe and whatever a watermoon is, he doesnt need too much help as long as fools like you keep commenting.
Right it's all re-election bs. Obama needs to go. 6 trillion dallars later and were in worse shape than when he took office. What a joke. If you have grandchildren there lifetime taxes are already spent.
What kind of crack are you smokin' man! Weren't you paying attention when the Bush administration and the Republican controlled house and congress sold you're grandchildrens future out on Weapons of Mass destruction that didn't exsist.... Put down the crack pipe before you type!
Your grandchildren may well end up in a land of pollution caused today's greed. If this is the case, their future was ended by you.
MIKE you did know that Bush has been out of office for three years now, didn't you?
Nothing we can do about Bush.
Can we talk about the inept lying quasi socialist in the white house now, we can do something about him.
Obama wants to frack me of more of my hard earned money. In one sentence he talks about the billionaires and big corporations then he says......"so we shall tax earners making $250,000 +." Anyone making $250,000 is not a Warren Buffett or Bill Gates or big corporation. These small time earners do not have any tax loop holes to pay low to zero taxes. Get the frack out of my life, Obama.
Big idea fracking! "Big disaster to happen you watch." Don't do it.
Please take a look at this. The technolgy is a good one for the enviroment. These type of applications are game changers for the USA.
Ecosphere Technologies, Inc. (Ecosphere) is a diversified engineering, technology development and manufacturing company. The Company is using its Ecosphere Ozonix technology to assist gas and oil companies in treating water used to fracture natural gas wells in an environmentally friendly manner; in eliminating the use of chemicals to treat bacteria and reduce scaling in the fracturing process; in eliminating the need to dispose of contaminated water which flows back after fracturing wells, which reduces environmental regulatory issues, and improving the efficiency and productivity of natural gas wells. Ecosphere provides energy exploration companies with an onsite, chemically free method to kill bacteria and reduce scaling during fracturing and flowback operations.
There isn't much reason to pass laws and regulations if the anti-American rabid right-wing crime mobs can bully the government into inaction.
Every day our society gets worse and worse at the hands of the right-wing mobs. No American, no American job is safe until every last corrupt right-wing thug and criminal and criminal is removed from office, elected or appointed.
If you really want to know who governs the United States and owns the court system check out:
http://www.alec.org/
http://alecwatch.org/
http://alecexposed.org/
http://www.thenation.com/article/161973/koch-connection
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/legislative-committee-moves-away-from-stand-your-ground-laws/2012/04/17/gIQAN1ytOT_story.html?hpid=z3
These are the people who own and operate the republican party and other right-wing political organizations, for fun and huge profits at the expense of the American people, the US government and our society as a whole. They have sold us all for 30 pieces of silver plate. Or haven't you noticed the third-world condition of the US kangaroo kourt system?
You haven't lived in a democracy or a republic since early 1981 when Reagan and the neocons began selling the American people down the river, when control of our once free and independent broadcast media was handed over to the people we were warned about controlling the media - corporations. Laws died, were ignored or re-interpreted to appease Reagan cronies. Now you owe your soul to the company store.
To get some education about the big business, right-wing controlled media, the disinformation disseminated by the propagandists masquerading as journalists and the total lack of honesty, morals or ethics in the right-wing politicos check out:
http://mediamatters.org/
Political------- Found your Lefty Manifesto, eh?
Where was it, under the sofa.
You leftys really do need some new material, you are starting to sound like one of the old broken records.
Go back to "Bush did it" and "you're a racist".
It is just as boring, but it's shorter.
No Bobby w, it's you righties that really need some new material. Bush did do it you're just too dumb to realize it. Not all Conservatives are idiots, but all idiots are Conservatives... and you sound like you're a lead dog in the dog team. Mush on Bobby, Sarah's callin ya.
They should not be allowed to pump that polluted water into the ground under any circumstances. Its like they want to poison ground water to force everyone to have to buy it.
Smog? What about the rampant ground water contamination?