Fracking Ban Bill Introduced to Senate

A 10-year moratorium on fracking bill (S 457) in Mass will be heard at the Senate floor session on June 9. Stay tuned for updates.

Excerpt from the article in the Berkshire Eagle:

"Two recycling bills and legislation calling for a 10-year ban on hydraulic fracturing in Massachusetts are on tap for Senate consideration next week.

The Senate on Thursday adopted orders scheduling four bills for its June 9 session, including legislation addressing municipal solid waste reduction (S 454); recycling programs at state facilities (S 1653); a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing, commonly known as fracking (S 457); and a zoning law overhaul aimed at boosting housing production. (S 2144).

The fracking moratorium would run from Jan. 1, 2017, to Dec. 31, 2026, and would ban hydraulic fracturing — the pumping of fluid into the ground to extract oil or gas from the resulting fractures — and the collecting, storage, treatment or disposal of hydraulic fracturing fluid waste byproducts in Massachusetts, according to a bill summary. The fluid would be categorized as a pollutant, and the Division of Water Pollution Control would be given the authority to enforce the moratorium.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Marc Pacheco, comes after other attempts to ban fracking in Massachusetts have failed.: