Call your NC State Senators and thank them for telling Governor Perdue "Thanks but no thanks".
So thank you to all who voted "Yes!"
So thank you to all who voted "Yes!"
Senate overrides vetoes on 'fracking,' Racial Justice Act
Raleigh, N.C. — The state Senate voted Monday to override Gov. Beverly Perdue's vetoes of bills dealing with natural gas drilling and the Racial Justice Act.
Both measures now go to the House, where the prospects for an override are unclear.
Perdue, a Democrat, vetoed Senate Bill 820 on Sunday. The legislation would begin the process of opening North Carolina to natural gas exploration, including the controversial method known as hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking.".
"This bill does not do enough to ensure that adequate protections for our drinking water, landowners, county and municipal governments, and the health and safety of our families will be in place before fracking begins," Perdue said in her veto message.
Sen. Bob Rucho, R-Mecklenburg, told members that the environmental protections in the bill would avoid any ill effects from the horizontal drilling and fracturing processes.
But opponents said the bill would leave landowners vulnerable to abuses by energy companies.
Sen. Martin Nesbitt, D-Buncombe, said one part of the measure would allow gas drillers to force some landowners to sell their mineral rights.
"You're going to find that people don't like being told their land can be taken without due process," Nesbitt said. The override vote was 29-13.
On the Racial Justice Act overhaul, senators voted 31-11 to override Perdue's veto.
Both measures now go to the House, where the prospects for an override are unclear.
Perdue, a Democrat, vetoed Senate Bill 820 on Sunday. The legislation would begin the process of opening North Carolina to natural gas exploration, including the controversial method known as hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking.".
"This bill does not do enough to ensure that adequate protections for our drinking water, landowners, county and municipal governments, and the health and safety of our families will be in place before fracking begins," Perdue said in her veto message.
Sen. Bob Rucho, R-Mecklenburg, told members that the environmental protections in the bill would avoid any ill effects from the horizontal drilling and fracturing processes.
But opponents said the bill would leave landowners vulnerable to abuses by energy companies.
Sen. Martin Nesbitt, D-Buncombe, said one part of the measure would allow gas drillers to force some landowners to sell their mineral rights.
"You're going to find that people don't like being told their land can be taken without due process," Nesbitt said. The override vote was 29-13.
On the Racial Justice Act overhaul, senators voted 31-11 to override Perdue's veto.
3 comments:
On the Racial Justice Act, I agree with the GA in over riding the veto. The original bill was terrible and it needed to be changed, big time.
With respect to the fracking bill, I think they made a mistake here. Forgetting politics, basically the GA wrote a bill that says, in two years we will have fracking, the appropriate agencies have less than 2 years to have all their ducks in a row. That is backwards.
The layer of shale near the Lee/Chatham line is very close to the surface. As a result the regulators have to be VERY careful to make sure the water supply is protected. Given the time constraints, I am concerned that we will not get it right.
Now, in the bill, the legislators have to review and approve the regs before final approval for fracking, but that is a joke. There is no way that our representatives will understand the regs or the consequences when they look at them. So, what should be a scientific review process will instead be an opportunity for political grandstanding on both sides.
I also don't like the fact that I can be forced into allowing mining on my propery, at rates bargained for by my neighbors, but I think its time to get off my soapbox.
The residents of NC stand a very high probability of being the losers here.
Always two sides to every story. Thank you for having the guts to voice yours!
Happy 4th!
Mr. Wulpern,
While stationed in Haiti, we were at the Port-au-Prince harbor unloading our combat vehicles that were shipped from Wilmington. We were warned that if we accidentally fell into the dense green murky water, we would be immediately MEDEVAC'd due to the toxic and open sewer that was the harbor (the city of Port-au-Prince had not sewage treatment system so all of it's human waste flowed into the port).
Not 100 meters from the ships an Army water treatment team had a hose sucking water from that very same harbor, running through a portable water treatment plant and for extra protection, ran the treated water through the plant a second time. . . That water sustained the 10th Mountain Division plus support troops for the entire time we were in Haiti.
The moral of the story is Mr. Wulpern, we have the technology and the means to ensure that the water here in Lee County can be treated safely.
As for the gas under your property, remember the city, state, and federal government can (Fifth Amendment) use "eminent domain" to traverse your property. With the gas company, you will receive compensation (provided someone in the past didn't sell your mineral rights).
Clearly, this is a win for all involved.
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