Rural Community Assistance Partnership

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Opinion: Forty more years of progress on water infrastructure

Posted Tue, 2012/10/23 - 4:23pm by RCAP

From the Associated General Contractors of America:

Forty years ago, the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution went into effect. The Federal Water Pollution Control Amendments of 1972, known as the Clean Water Act (CWA), became law after the bill was vetoed by President Nixon. In a tradition that continues to this day, the legislation was spurred on by bipartisan support and public opinion.

Political wrestling over fracking in North Carolina

Posted Tue, 2012/07/03 - 9:17am by RCAP

From the Charlotte [North Carolina] Observer:

Perdue vetoes fracking bill; GOP accuses governor of 'flip-flop'

Gov. Bev Perdue vetoed legislation on Sunday [July 1] that would have paved the way for North Carolina to drill for natural gas through a water and chemical intensive process known as fracking. It is the Democratic governor’s third veto of major Republican-backed legislation — all in the past four days.

ProPublica: So, Is Dimock's Water Really Safe to Drink?

Posted Fri, 2012/03/23 - 10:58am by RCAP

by Abrahm Lustgarten ProPublica, March 20, 2012

March 21: This post has been corrected.

When the Environmental Protection Agency announced last week that tests showed the water is safe to drink in Dimock, Penn., a national hot spot for concerns about fracking, it seemed to vindicate the energy industry's insistence that drilling had not caused pollution in the area.