Friday, April 20, 2012
Last-minute vote pushes back action a minimum two months; city to invite state industry regulators
City officials in Kent want to wait and gather more information about hydraulic fracturing before weighing in on the issue in a formal letter to state leaders. Kent City Council voted Wednesday to wait two months before sending a letter to Gov. John Kasich, members of the Ohio legislature and regulatory officials at the Ohio Department of Natural Resources expressing concerns about the controversial process of drilling for natural gas hundreds of feet beneath the ground. The vote delays action previously approved by council that followed several hours of discussion at a capacity-crowd meeting held in March on the issue. After that lengthy meeting, council agreed to send such a letter on behalf of those residents who spoke out with concerns…
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Council votes to send letter to state legislators urging fracking oversight; continue conversation
The question of whether or not Kent can ban fracking within city limits became a question of state government versus local government at Wednesday's Kent City Council meeting. Residents pleaded with council members to adopt an ordinance banning hydraulic fracturing, a controversial method of drilling for natural gas, by urging them to lead by example and challenge state authority. In the end, after three hours of talking with a capacity crowd, council took two steps forward. First, council members voted to send a letter regarding fracking to state legislators and officials at the Ohio Department of Natural Resources — the agency that regulates oil and gas drilling in Ohio — on behalf of Kent residents. Councilman John Kuhar said the letter…
Monday, August 22, 2011
Letters to the editor may be emailed to matt.fredmonsky@patch.com
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Monday, August 22, 2011
To the Editor: As a retired property owner in Portage County, I dread the arrival of the oil and gas industry’s rush to fracking. Although we haven’t signed a lease for our land, we know that in this rural area, the industry only needs 65 percent of owners to agree — then they can drill even if we say no. And when drilling is planned near homes, most banks, HUD, and FHA won’t give loans, so we can’t expect to sell and move elsewhere. Also, as soon as a drilling permit is signed, property values will be cut in half — money home-owners planned for old age. In the event of an accident causing surface or well contamination, our property will be worth nothing. Fracking is on its way to Portage County. Already chemically laced frack fluid waste …
Myron Holley
4:32 pm on Saturday, April 21, 2012
says OBUMMER more ›