Administration Stacks Panel With Big Oil and Gas [View All]

[babsbunny]

http://www.ewg.org/release/administration-stacks-panel-big-oil-and-gas

CONTACT: EWG Public Affairs, 202-667-6982; [e-mail]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 10, 2011

The Obama administration panel named May 5 to study hydraulic fracturing, a natural gas drilling technique that injects thousands of gallons of chemical-laced water into the ground, is dominated by oil and gas industry professionals.

Notably, the panel does not include citizens from communities concerned about the damage to health, water and private property posed by the surge in natural gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing.

“An industry insider like John Deutch is completely unacceptable to lead this panel,” Environmental Working Group Senior Counsel Dusty Horwitt said. “It looks as if the Obama Administration has already reached the conclusion that fracking is safe.”

Fracking involves injecting a mix of water, sand and chemicals into a well under high pressure in order to fracture underground rock formations and unlock trapped gas and oil. The technology has been linked to water contamination, air pollution, release of methane and deteriorating health in communities near drilling sites.