Conservatives risking public safety with lack of fracking rules: NDP

Two years after promising regulations, Canadians are still waiting

OTTAWA – NDP Natural Resources critic Claude Gravelle (Nickel Belt) and Environment Critic Megan Leslie (Halifax) criticized Conservative inaction and irresponsibility regarding the development of unconventional sources of oil and gas.

New Democrats ask the Conservative government to end its two-year stall on promised rules for the fracking of shale gas in the wake of news reports that an Alberta well blowout and Ohio earthquake were triggered by the controversial mining.

“These are serious accidents putting the public at risk and yet the Conservatives two years after promising regulations still let their friends in the oil and gas industry make up the rules,” said Claude Gravelle. “It’s the job of government to protect Canadians and right now they are not doing the job.”

Provincial regulators in Alberta acknowledge an oil well blowout last Friday near Innisfail, Alberta could have caused an oil well blow a kilometre away. On Christmas Eve, a 4.0 earthquake in Ohio was linked to nearby hydraulic fracturing.

“Earthquakes and blowouts have got everyone’s attention except this government,” said Megan Leslie. “They’ve completely abandoned the precautionary principle, something that should be at the heart of all our decision making on environment issues. The risks related to this technique must be identified in full, particularly cumulative impacts.”

Fracking is an increasingly controversial practice that injects chemical-laced water and sand at high pressure into oil and gas reservoirs to enhance underground pathways so hydrocarbons flow to the wellbore. It's subject to moratoriums in several jurisdictions including Quebec over concerns ranging from water contamination to water quantity.