Ohio national forest halts sale of drilling rights

NELSONVILLE, Ohio (AP) — The U.S. Forest Service has decided to hold off on selling drilling rights in Ohio’s only national forest so officials there can explore potential impacts from the process known as fracking.

Anne Carey, supervisor for Wayne National Forest, said in a statement today that more than 3,000 acres have been withdrawn from a natural gas and oil lease sale scheduled for Dec. 7.

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a horizontal drilling technique for gas that uses chemical-laced water to break up shale deep underground so trapped gas is released.

Local leaders from areas near the forest in southeast Ohio had protested the lease sale, saying they feared a fracking accident could harm the forest.

Carey says the forest will bring together experts to study fracking’s possible effects above ground.