Energy Department Advisory Committee Endorses Shale Gas Exploration

From K.B. Battaglini of GT Houston:

The Natural Gas Subcommittee of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board issued its Ninety-Day Report today, stating that hydraulic fracturing can continue safely as long as companies disclose more about their practices and monitor their environmental impact.  The report constitutes a qualified endorsement of shale gas exploration.  Members of the Subcommittee include MIT professor John Deutch, Environmental Defense Fund president Fred Krupp, and Kathleen McGinty, former Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection who also served as Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality during the Clinton Administration.  The Advisory Board was established at the request of President Obama, as part of his “Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future.”  The Environmental Protection Agency, which regulates air and water quality, is conducting its own study of the effects of hydraulic fracturing.  EPA intends to release a report of its findings in 2012.