Apparently, the Safe Drinking Water Act makes it a federal crime to violate state rules governing wells.
FORBES: U.S. v. King: It��s Time for Some Prosecutorial Restraint
And investigations by the Bush administration's Justice Department and Environmental Protection Agency found no criminal conduct by Marine Corps officials and no violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act.
The April 2012 EPA decision to reduce air emissions from fracking could well be followed by an effort to end exemptions from certain elements of the Safe Drinking Water Act.
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Virtually all disposal of wastewater is regulated by the EPA, either under the Safe Drinking Water Act or the Clean Water Act, but the EPA may delegate actual enforcement of these regulations to the states.
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In the annals of unwarranted federal criminal prosecutions, it would be tough to find a more outrageous case than that of Idaho farmer Cory King, who stands convicted of felony violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act.
FORBES: U.S. v. King: It��s Time for Some Prosecutorial Restraint
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 exempted hydraulic fracturing operations from the Safe Drinking Water Act, freeing drilling companies from the obligation to disclose the chemicals injected into deep shale formations to shatter shale and convey gas back to the well.
What makes this prosecution particularly senseless is that the Safe Drinking Water Act was adopted to prevent the pollution of water supplies, yet the evidence at trial convincingly demonstrated (and the trial judge so held) that the water King injected into his irrigation wells contained absolutely no contaminants.
FORBES: U.S. v. King: It��s Time for Some Prosecutorial Restraint
And while the Energy Policy Act of 2005 prevents the EPA from explicitly regulating fracking wells under the Safe Drinking Water Act, both the EPA and the Ground Water Protection Council, a nonprofit made up of state regulatory agencies, have published studies determining that no documented evidence of fracking-sourced groundwater pollution has been found.
The Safe Drinking Water Act includes numerous loopholes that allow oil and gas producers to inject a wide variety of chemicals into the ground without the need for a permit, yet federal prosecutors somehow deem it appropriate to bring felony charges against farmers who try to ensure that they have enough clean water to irrigate their crops.
FORBES: U.S. v. King: It��s Time for Some Prosecutorial Restraint
That list is part of the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, otherwise known as Prop 65, which prohibits businesses from knowingly exposing individuals to listed substances without providing a clear and reasonable warning.
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