California Proposal for Fracking Moratorium Clears Panel

California Proposal for Fracking Moratorium Clears Panel by Michael B. Marois & Alison Vekshin, April 29, 2013, Bloomberg
A California Assembly panel approved a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing by oil and natural-gas producers until the most populous U.S. state assesses health and environmental concerns. The bill by Adrin Nazarian, a Los Angeles Democrat, is opposed by the oil industry through the Western States Petroleum Association, which says hydraulic fracturing has been used safely for more than 60 years. Democrats on the Natural Resources Committee approved the measure 5-3 on a party-line vote late yesterday. Democrats control the Legislature. … New York and New Jersey have moratoriums in place.
“We must identify the risks and ensure the public that we are doing everything in our power to protect them,” said Assemblyman Richard Bloom, a Santa Monica Democrat who proposed one of two other measures that would place a moratorium on fracking. Both also passed the committee. Nazarian’s bill would require the secretaries of the California Natural Resources Agency and the California Environmental Protection Agency to lead a study to determine whether fracking can be done without risk. [Emphasis added]