Senate Bill 442

John Giotis, Chair of the Florida Council for Safe Communities, made the following statement regarding Senate Bill 442:
“Senate Bill 442, which would ban hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in Florida, is an unnecessary overreaction to activists who believe fracking puts Florida residents at risk. As our name indicates, the Florida Council for Safe Communities opposes all public policies that endanger our citizens, and we oppose this bill because there is no compelling evidence that a fracking ban is necessary to protect our citizens.
“On the contrary, fracking has been used safely in the United States for many decades. The EPA, among others, has studied the practice and concluded that there is no evidence that it adversely impacts drinking water resources. The cleaner-burning natural gas it produces has actually helped to reduce carbon emissions significantly, contributing to the health of our environment.
“Banning a safe technology that holds the promise of unleashing even more of our state’s energy resources based on emotion rather than science is shortsighted. We urge Florida legislators to look at the facts and reject the false idea that banning fracking will keep Floridians safer.”