Bern Hates Fracking

Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on Sunday night mocked Hillary Clinton’s numerous conditions for allowing hydraulic fracturing operations.

“My answer is a lot shorter,” he said, responding to a debate question about whether the candidates support fracking, a procedure in which pressurized water and chemicals are injected into the ground to release oil and natural gas.

“No, I do not support fracking,” he said to cheers from the debate crowd in Flint, Mich.  

Clinton said she opposes individual fracking operations if a series of conditions are met: if local communities oppose it, if the drilling releases methane or contaminates water or if fracking operators aren't required to identify the chemicals they are using.

“By the time we get through all of my conditions, I do not think there will be many places in America where fracking will continue to take place,” she said.

“First, we’ve got to regulate everything that is currently underway, and we’ve got to have a system in place that prevents further fracking unless conditions like the ones I have mentioned are met.”

The federal government has limited regulatory power over fracking except when it happens on federal land. State and local governments, though, have tried to regulate the practice to varying degrees. New York has banned fracking, while the Texas Legislature blocked its cities from limiting the practice on their own.  

Read more: http://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/272001-sanders-my-answ...

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Permalink Reply by G.H. on March 7, 2016 at 8:45am

No big surprise there.  Didn't his state ban fracking?  As if it even matters there.

Permalink Reply by Jim Litwinowicz on March 7, 2016 at 9:08am

All those fools that cheered, and anyone against fracking, should be forced to pay $3.80/gal of gasoline, 25% more on their electric bills, 25% more on their heating bills, breathe dirtier air, and pay for the defense of ME oil exporters that would be selling us the oil we need.

Permalink Reply by williet57 on March 7, 2016 at 9:14am

Hillary is against fracking also

Permalink Reply by alexandra on March 7, 2016 at 9:50am

I found this article about Hillary.

This story originally appeared in Grist and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

A college student asked Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton a simple question at the Flint, Mich., debate on Sunday night: "Do you support fracking?"

And Bernie Sanders had a simple answer: "No, I do not support fracking."

Read MoJo's Investigation: How Hillary Clinton's State Department Sold Fracking to the World

Hillary Clinton, though, needed more time to outline three conditions in a more nuanced answer on fracking. She's against it "when any locality or any state is against it," "when the release of methane or contamination of water is present," and "unless we can require that anybody who fracks has to tell us exactly what chemicals they are using."

Until those conditions are met, "we've got to regulate everything that is currently underway, and we have to have a system in place that prevents further fracking."

"By the time we get through all of my conditions, I do not think there will be many places in America where fracking will continue to take place," she added.

"By the time we get through all of my conditions, I do not think there will be many places in America where fracking will continue to take place."

Clinton offered qualified support for fracking well before Sanders even registered in the presidential race. Addressing the National Clean Energy Summit in 2014, Clinton said, "we have to face head-on the legitimate, pressing environmental concerns about some new extraction practices and their impacts on local water, soil, and air supplies. Methane leaks in the production and transportation of natural gas are particularly troubling. So it's crucial that we put in place smart regulations and enforce them, including deciding not to drill when the risks are too high."

Yet, she sounded much more rosy on natural gas and fracking years ago than she does now. "With the right safeguards in place, gas is cleaner than coal. And expanding production is creating tens of thousands of new jobs," she said in 2014. "And lower costs are helping give the United States a big competitive advantage in energy-intensive energies."

As secretary of state in 2010, Clinton argued in favor of gas as "the cleanest fossil fuel available for power generation today," and said that "if developed, shale gas could make an important contribution to our region's energy supply, just as it does now for the United States." Her office, meanwhile, promoted fracking in developing nations.

After leaving the Obama administration in 2014, Clinton still emphasized the benefits of fracking, implying that strict limits on fracking should be the exception to the rule. In 2016, Clinton has flipped her emphasis, as Sanders has gained an edge from his anti-fracking stance: Now, she suggests it will be a rare, unlikely case when fracking should be allowed.

Permalink Reply by Gas Boy on March 7, 2016 at 10:01am

The only "business" that Bernie supports is Government.  Hillary just wants to regulate and tax businesses.

Permalink Reply by David Perotto on March 7, 2016 at 12:20pm

The ignorance of these two is astounding. Even President Obama (at times) has stated positive things about fracking. Of course his EPA has been very obstructionist towards fossil fuels while he has played the middle. So, you have to ask yourself - if the candidates are left of Obama , how out of touch are they? Simple answer is they are too far left for the Presidency. Trump or Cruz need to pounce on these socialists and marginalize them by portraying them as un-electable. Just where would the energy come from, if not from fracing? They dont understand the science and are pandering to the hysterical, environmental wing of the Democrat Party. 

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