Fracking Ban

Legislation to Ban Fracking

This initiative is about banning the use of horizontal hydraulic fracturing and production, storage, disposal, and processing of horizontal hydraulic fracturing.

INITIATION OF LEGISLATION

An initiation of legislation to prohibit the use of horizontal hydraulic fracturing and production, storage, disposal, and processing of horizontal hydraulic fracturing wastes on Earth, on land or in sea.

Whereas, hydraulic fracturing is a means for irresponsible disposal of vast quantities of manufactured toxic wastes without accounting for the social and environmental costs;

Whereas, in communities around the world, fraud has repeatedly been committed for the purpose of buying permissions from a small number of landowners for the injection of toxic wastes into the bedrock, and consequently into the aquifers of the regions where the hydraulic fracturing is applied;

It has long been the declared policy of this World Parliament to foster conservation of natural resources so that our citizens may continue to enjoy the fruits and profits of those resources. Failure to adopt such a policy in the pioneer days of the state

permitted the unwarranted slaughter and removal of magnificent timber abounding in the state, which resulted in an immeasurable loss and waste. In an effort to replace some of this loss, millions of dollars have been spent in reforestation, which could have been saved had the original timber been removed under proper conditions.

The interests of the people demand that exploitation and waste of oil and gas be prevented so that the history of the loss of timber and aquifers not be repeated. It is accordingly the declared policy of the Earth Federation to protect the interests of its citizens and landowners from unwarranted waste of gas and oil;

And whereas, the aquifers appear to usually suffer total destruction or severe deterioration from the process;

To give effect to sound policies of conservation and the prevention of waste and exploitation, and to protect human health and water;

To protect all humanity and the life of the biosphere;

The World Parliament, meeting in 13th session, in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India, hereby prohibits hydraulic fracturing.

• Article 1. Utilization of Waste is prohibited A person shall not commit waste in the exploration for or in the following activities regarding oil or gas, or in the handling of any product of oil or gas:
  • development
  • drilling
  • completion
  • production
  • handling; or
  • use. Injection of waste during any process of hydraulic fracturing, whether horizontal or not, is a world class 7 felony.

• Article 2. Horizontal hydraulic fracturing is prohibited
  • “Horizontal hydraulic fracturing” as used in this part means the technique of expanding or creating rock fractures leading from substantially horizontal wellbores, by injecting substances including but not limited to water, fluids, chemicals, and proppants, under pressure, into or under rock formations, for purposes of exploration, drilling, completion, or production of oil or natural gas.
  • Horizontal hydraulic fracturing waste” as used in this part means any of the following in regard to horizontal hydraulic fracturing:
    • injection of fracturing fluids consisting of, but not limited to, water, chemicals, proppants, and additives used for horizontal hydraulic fracturing.
    • production of brines, flowback, produced water, residual fluids, or drill cuttings that return to the surface in the horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing process.
    • To ensure the health, safety and general welfare of the people and to protect plants, animals, air, land, and water, any person, corporation or other entity must not use, nor shall any department permit the use of, horizontal hydraulic fracturing anywhere on the Earth in land or sea. Except for planned sequestration and neutralization by an agency of the Earth Federation, any person, corporation, or other entity must not store, dispose, or process wastes used or produced in horizontal hydraulic fracturing. Unauthorised transport, storage or processing of wastes is a world class 3 felony. Direction to unauthorised storage or processing of wastes is a world class 4 felony. Unauthorised transfer or disposal of wastes resulting in no further contamination of the environment is a world class 5 felony. Direction for unauthorised transfer or disposal of wastes resulting in no further contamination of the environment is a world class 6 felony. Unauthorised disposal of wastes resulting in loss of containment with environmental contamination is a world class 7 felony.

• Article 3. Willful release or dumping of extracted petroleum products in solid, liquid or gas form resulting in loss of containment with environmental contamination is a world class 7 felony.

  Notwithstanding this provision, in cases of gas pressure release, where failure to provide release will probably result in explosive conditions or blowouts that might be worse than the immediate effects of the gas release, the World Parliament will enact separate legislation which will include plans and allocations to end the dangers of blowouts, explosions and gas releases

• Article 4. Date of entrance into effect.

  Due to the emergency nature of this problem of hydraulic fracturing, this world legislation comes into immediate effect.

Attested, Eugenia Almand, JD, Provisional World Parliament