Skip to content

NEWS: Chapter petition seeks fracking ban in Nova Scotia

Giles and Oommen at the Nova Scotia legislature

Giles and Oommen at the Nova Scotia legislature

The Canadian Press reports that, “A petition calling for a ban in Nova Scotia on a controversial method of oil and gas extraction has been tabled in the legislature. …The petition with about 1,200 names calls for a provincial ban on hydraulic fracturing, or fracking — a process that involves using large quantities of water mixed with sand and chemicals to free gas from shale.”

“Thom Oommen, chairman of the Inverness County chapter of the Council of Canadians, said some other jurisdictions are conducting reviews or have banned fracking because of health concerns over the chemicals used.”

Oomen and Council of Canadians Atlantic organizer Angela Giles also met with Nova Scotia Energy Minister Bill Estabrooks yesterday afternoon. “Estabrooks didn’t make any commitments, but Oommen said he was pleased with the meeting. ‘This is just one step,’ Oommen said. ‘We’re not done by any stretch of the imagination. We are making connections with other communities where this has happened.'”

The article in the Halifax Chronicle Herald is at http://thechronicleherald.ca/NovaScotia/1211073.html. The on-line petition can be found at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/banfrackingnovascotia/.