This issue is vital to British Columbians.
Hydraulic fracturing will play an important role in northeast shale gas fields. Despite known and probable risks, BC Liberals have ceded oversight of the environment to producers in an industry with a record of carelessness and frequent mishaps. Though risk has been rising dramatically, the BC Liberals steadily reduced protection resources. This is done for their corporate sponsors who demand self-regulation, a policy that will lead to unprecedented disasters.
The Financial Times reports that today “Gasland, the environmental documentary about the effects of shale gas extraction, has been nominated for a “best documentary” Oscar. The makers are, of course, buzzing, but, predictably, gas campaigners are livid.
Categories: Environment, Fracking, ProPublica
IN-SIGHTS 
Norm,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cTIYsvJOQk
“Don't Go Near The Water” by The Beach Boys, from their 1971 album “Surf's Up”
This song is from an era when ecology was the buzzword; and the water was not as polluted as it is today.
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Fascist governments let this stuff happen. Social ones don't.
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“BC Liberals have ceded oversight of the environment to producers in an industry with a record of carelessness and frequent mishaps. Though risk has been rising dramatically, the BC Liberals steadily reduced protection resources.“
Of course this is the government/corporate (ie fascist) approach, any unbiased and socially responsible oversight would cost too much in DOLLARS, to hell with any “externalities” (unaccounted for costs). I am regularly stunned at the level of denial and duplicity displayed by those in the industry and their supporters who can lie in your face with a straight face and claim absolutely no risks and no harm by these “fracking” activities. They have the gall to claim that exploding wells, water taps that can be lit on fire and cows who die from either drinking the water (where they've been drinking for a century or more, pre hydraulic fractionation activity) or from thirst because even they won't drink the water are merely same old same old that has been common forever.
The Province of Alberta will supply hauled water to ranchers whose wells and watering holes are suspected of being hazardous UNTIL the water is tested under the supervision of the Province/Industry (its hard to tell where one ends and the other begins in a facsist regime). The usual result of the testing is the water is found to be “fine” or if not safe the cause is determined to be poor “well hygiene protocols” on the part of the rancher – either way the rancher then has to haul his own water at his own expense or sell his now worthless (for habitation or raising cattle) ranch!
For an excellent look at both the Tar Sands and the increasing gas exploration in specifically Alberta look for “Stupid to the Last Drop.” This starts with the ill advised plan to extract the goo from the Tar Sands by means of thousands (maybe a million) underground nuclear explosions (at risk of collapse of the ground itself, among other things like radioactive fuel at the pump) and was almost implemented in the late fifties, early sixties, only stopped at the last minute by a change in the government in Ottawa, when the new government quashed the almost ready to go intitial test near Ft. McMurray. The nuke had been acquired, the test hole into which to lower the device had been drilled, a road to the test hole had been made to the railhead where the nuke was scheduled to arrive from Los Alamos by rail (Air transport having been originally planned for security and safety reasons, but scrapped in favor of rail to save costs closer to implementation).
Currently the water supply for the entire super megalopolis of the Eastern Seaboard (New York City, Philly and such) is at risk to major fracking activity in upstate New York, putting at risk the supply of safe fresh water to millions and millions of people. Many towns in the “Rust Belt” to the west are already ghost towns occuppied by lost souls who got a bit of money for the rights to explore on their land, but now own land and houses with no potable water and sometimes (water) wells that have exploded, hence not very inhabitable or saleable.
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