Forum Post: Burning Question: What Would Life Be Like Without the Halliburton Loophole?

Posted 12 years ago on Dec. 8, 2011, 3:32 p.m. EST by GirlFriday (17435)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement

http://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2011/12/05/burning-question-what-would-life-be-like-without-the-halliburton-loophole/

8 Comments

Read the Rules

[-] 1 points by economicallydiscardedcitizen (761) 12 years ago

A: The Giant Oil & Gas industries would find other ways to obfuscate the realities of their activities and it would take a massive effort for those outside it to enforce laws which are routinely violated both openly and secretly.

A commenter on the article's site summed up a good response here: SciGuy 2 days ago Voodoo3, I appreciate your perseverance in the face of (a surprising source of) ignorance. I have a MS in geology and have many friends in the O&G industry, some of whom seem to have blinders on, also. To say that We trust the O&G industry to do the right thing and disclose all chemicals and activities without having a gun to their head is just another sign of lambs being led to the slaughter. Whether State or Federal enforcement happens doesn't matter as much as the fact that enforcement NEEDS to happen, PERIOD.(and it is NOT, currently) We need Regulators we can trust to do their jobs and not be in the pocket of the O&G companies, as happened with the Dept of the Interior not too long ago.

As for whether States or the Fed enforces the laws, that's a tough one. As an example of a federal institution, the EPA may have the power to act but doesn't have the money or manpower. The States may indeed be in a better position to enforce laws and restrictions, however the O&G industry, thru the efforts of their lobbyists, seem to hold more sway over State institutions than their Federal counterparts.