Summit touts fracking benefits

May 3, 2012 at 12:00a.m.

COLUMBUS

State lawmakers touted their efforts to regulate Ohio’s emerging oil- and gas-drilling industry Wednesday during a half-day summit near the Statehouse.

The Republican leaders of the Ohio House and Senate also praised oil and gas companies for cooperating on state-law changes to protect the environment and called for increased coordination with the state’s school systems to deepen the pool of skilled workers needed to fill the thousands of new job openings.

But lawmakers had little to say about an increase in the state’s oil and gas taxes related to horizontal hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a change being sought by Gov. John Kasich.

Otherwise, comments from state officials during the Ohio Energy Jobs Summit were in line with the narrative they have been weaving for more than a year — that fracking can provide a big boost to the state’s economy without having a big negative impact on the state’s environment.

“I firmly believe ... that we can responsibly develop oil and gas resources in Ohio and protect the environment,” said Senate President Tom Niehaus, a Republican from New Richmond. “They are not mutually exclusive opportunities.”

Kasich added later, “Let me be clear about it: We don’t get a good regulatory format, we’re not going to issue any permits. It’s just that simple. ... I do not want the public to lose confidence in the fact that we can have strong environmental regulations, ensure the public safety, and we’re working with industry to make sure that it’s not overboard, but we’re also not going to let it be under-board, to the point that the public can feel a sense of security.”

Niehaus, Kasich, Republican House Speaker Bill Batchelder and other office-holders were on hand for the conference in Columbus, coordinated by The Hill, a Washington, D.C., newspaper that reports on the federal government, and a business group, the Coalition for American Jobs.

Lawmakers started the day with a panel discussion on policy efforts related to fracking, a means of extracting oil and gas by pumping large volumes of water, chemicals and sand into deep underground shale formations.

State officials and other groups expect the industry to pump billions of dollars into the state economy and create tens of millions of jobs in coming decades.

Environmental groups, some Democratic lawmakers and others are concerned about the potential environmental impacts of fracking and are urging a moratorium on horizontal hydraulic fracturing and tougher regulations for the companies involved.

But Republican lawmakers who participated in Wednesday’s panel discussion said oil and gas companies and associations have been active participants in shaping state law related to fracking, advocating for higher fees to pay for well inspectors and environmental protections.

“The industry brought us the bill,” Batchelder said. “They wanted to be certain before any of this was widely known ... that they were going to be doing a good job for the citizens of Ohio.”

Niehaus added, “We heard the concerns. We addressed many of those concerns. But I give most of the credit to the industry for stepping up and saying, ‘Listen, we know some things are going to be changing.’”