New York lawmakers expand fracking ban to include liquid carbon dioxide

By MAYSOON KHAN
Associated Press/Report for America

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York lawmakers have passed a bill that would expand the state’s existing fracking ban. It would block natural gas drilling companies from using an extraction method that involves injecting huge amounts of liquid carbon dioxide into the ground. Now, it’s up to Governor Kathy Hochul to act on the legislation. Hydraulic fracturing involves a water-based solution and is already banned in the state. But the bill comes after a Texas company, Southern Tier Solutions, began reaching out to residents in New York’s Southern Tier last fall about drilling there with carbon dioxide. Some say the company is using carbon dioxide to circumvent the state’s existing ban.