WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd January, 2020) A resolution in Virginia's Senate banning fracking and offshore drilling will hopefully lead to a statewide ban on the oil and natural gas extraction method and protect drinking water for millions of people, food and Water Watch said in a press release.
"Fossil fuel corporations have been eyeing the Taylorsville basin the Tidewater as a fracking site for several years now, which would endanger the area's drinking water. In addition, offshore drilling is infamously devastating for the environment," the release said on Wednesday.
Two measures - one banning fracking in eastern Virginia and the other prohibiting offshore drilling - will now move to the Virginia Senate floor following committee approval on Tuesday.
"Although this is the first step of many required for these bans to become law, the move is a promising one, and prompts further demand for statewide bans on fossil fuel extraction in order to protect public health, the environment, and drinking water for millions," the release said.
Oil and gas producers claim fracking is safe if done properly, while opponents cite multiple instances of groundwater permanently poisoned by chemicals that the process injects into the ground to increase well output.
The adjacent state of Maryland has banned fracking and on Wednesday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo moved to make permanent his state's expiring five-year ban on the practice.
Environmental groups are pressing for a total ban on fossil fuels, to be replaced by renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and hydroelectric generation of electricity.
In contrast, the Trump administration has supported fracking, which has allowed the US to emerge as the world's top producer of oil and one of the top three natural gas producing nations, behind Australia and Qatar.
Trump has also opened US coastal regions of the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic oceans to offshore drilling.
