Fracking ban on ballot in Bowling Green

Here is another election issue for me to watch this year.

13ABC in Toledo: Fracking debate continues in Bowling Green

13abc.com Toledo (OH) News, Weather and Sports

Hydraulic fracturing or fracking, isn't practiced within city limits, but Mayor Richard Edwards worried it could hurt the drinking water supply if it was ever allowed in Bowling Green.  It was part of the reason city council unanimously passed a fracking ban two weeks ago.
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Another group in BG wants to take that push a step further.  They're drumming up voter support to get the fracking ban officially worked into the city charter this November.  They worry an ordinance alone could be overturned down the road.

"It hurts property values, it hurts human health and it pollutes the environment," says BG Charter Amendment Committee chair, Lisa Kochheiser.

This could be a dry run for a fracking ban in Michigan.  From The Huffington Post: Michigan Fracking Fight Ramps Up As State Chamber Of Commerce Fights Proposed Ban.

Last week, the chamber launched pro-fracking campaign "Protect Michigan's Energy Future." The group's website touts energy independence, job creation and decades of safe fracking in the state. It also specifically targets fracking opponents.

“The dangerous petition drive to ban hydraulic fracturing is based on fear and emotion, not facts or sound science," said Rich Studley, president and CEO of the Michigan chamber . "It is a direct attack on a key industry that provides good jobs and energy independence for our state."

Some fracking opponents, fueled by environmental and health concerns, are collecting signatures to put a proposal to ban fracking on the 2014 statewide ballot. The group needs more than 250,000 petition signatures.

"Stopping a well here or there, in one community or two or in just the parks will help, but it does not prevent the overall, large-scale invasion of this toxic, polluting industry from destroying our state." the Committee to Ban Fracking in Michigan says on its website.

As you can see, the battle lines are already drawn, even though the measure is not yet on the ballot and the election is a year away.