More than two dozen citizen, environmental and faith groups want the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to revoke Ohio's authority to regulate fracking waste.

In a new petition, the groups say the Ohio Department of Natural Resources hasn't complied with federal Safe Drinking Water Act requirements, or its environmental-justice obligations.

Billions of gallons of oil-and-gas waste have been injected into Ohio's Class II injection wells, including waste from other states.

Sierra Club Environmental Law Program Associate Attorney Ankit Jain argued that Ohio's poor regulatory program doesn't hold oil-and-gas companies accountable for violations.

"If you compare Ohio really across the rest of the country, it's one of the worst programs," said Jain. "Their regulation itself, the rules that the operators have to follow, are extremely lax. And then, the enforcement for violating the lax rules is almost nonexistent. It's not just that they could do better - it's really one of the worst of the worst."

Ohio has more than 220 injection wells. Jain explained that the brine, which is toxic and radioactive, is spread on roads as a deicer and dust suppressant.

ODNR counters that Ohio "operates an effective regulatory program that meets federal standards and protects public health."

Ashtabula County resident Julie Boetger is a member of the Ohio Brine Task Force and Ashtabula County Water Watch, both among the petitioners.

She said tests run by ONDR, as well as independent researchers, have revealed the brine in Ohio exceeds federal and state limits for radioactivity.

"This is contaminating our air, our water," said Boetger. "This is contaminating things that we can't see. So, it's very important that we pay attention to what's going on in our own backyard, and what exactly they're doing with fracking and brine."

The petition notes that injection wells are disproportionately located in low-income communities in Appalachia.

Jill Hunkler - director of Ohio Valley Allies - is from Belmont County, one of the most heavily fracked in the state. She said people have voiced their concerns to federal and state officials.

"Based on our mutual respect, I believe that we can work together to solve these issues, hopefully immediately," said Hunkler. "I feel like it's life or death for us here in Appalachia, Ohio, because we've been failed by regulating agencies - and certainly the industry."

Environmental groups are seeking greater input as California puts the finishing touches on its application to become a hub for hydrogen fuel production. This is billed as a big step toward a zero-carbon emission future. The project is being managed by a public-private partnership called the Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems, known as ARCHES.

Monica Embrey, energy director for the California Sierra Club, called this a good opportunity to advance climate progress but only if certain guardrails are put in place.

"If they use existing pipelines, they would have to really upgrade them quite a lot. And we want to make sure that those have safety mechanisms in place so that communities get to say whether or not a pipeline near them actually gets used for hydrogen. We want leakage monitoring, we want really strict standards," she said.

Hydrogen is extremely explosive and is a major greenhouse-gas pollutant if it leaks or is burned and will not be used for homes or commercial buildings, but instead will be targeted to medium and heavy-duty vehicles, ports and power plants, which are especially difficult to decarbonize, ARCHES said.

In addition, ARCHES said hydrogen will be produced using renewable power and will not be blended with natural gas within pipelines.

SoCal Gas and Chevron have been consulting on the application. The ARCHES website calls for meaningful engagement with community groups and environmental justice advocates.

Bahram Fazeli, director of research and policy with the nonprofit Communities for a Better Environment, said the planning process has been vague to date.

"They have done a very poor job of prioritizing environmental justice or public health in their process. They're not open to California's open-meeting laws and public participation. They only have one environmental-justice representative on the 11-member board, " Fazeli said.

The application to the Department of Energy is due April 7th. New hydrogen hubs could bring more than a$1-billion in federal investment to California, supporters said.

A bill designed to fight price-gouging at the gas pump is expected to pass the California State Assembly today and be signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom soon after.

Senate Bill X1-2 would create a watchdog at the California Energy Commission empowered to set a "reasonable" profit margin for gasoline and assess penalties for price-gouging.

Meghan Sahli-Wells, former mayor of Culver City and California director of the group Elected Officials to Protect America, said oil companies must be held accountable.

"What we've seen is behind these price hikes aren't the external forces that the big oil companies have blamed for the humongous price spikes," Sahli-Wells asserted. "What we've seen are refineries that have doubled their profits."

The Western States Petroleum Association has slammed the bill, blaming high gas prices on a supply shortage linked to a lack of investment in refining capacity and necessary infrastructure.

Gas prices last summer and fall hit an average of $6.42 per gallon in California, more than $2.50 higher than the national average.

The oil and gas industry is behind a ballot measure to roll back a California law passed last year requiring new drilling permits to include setbacks from homes and schools. Sahli-Wells argued the state needs to cut air pollution from burning fossil fuels, adding she does not like recent mailers blaming higher gas prices on state regulation.

"The industry itself is going hot and heavy on propaganda to scare people into dialing back environmental protection," Sahli-Wells contended. "It does feel somewhat like an 'oil war' is happening in California. But we know that if we are to win, that oil must lose."

The new watchdog would also have the power to subpoena business records in order to root out price manipulation.

California lawmakers hold a hearing in Sacramento today on a bill to hold oil companies and gasoline refiners accountable for alleged price gouging.

According to the Office of Gov. Gavin Newsom, gas prices in California hit an average of $6.42 per gallon last fall, which was $2.61 more than the national average. And it happened even as crude oil prices dropped and state taxes and fees remained unchanged.

Farrah Khan, mayor of Irvine, said she supports Senate Bill 2, which would establish an independent watchdog within the California Energy Commission.

"It's going to establish a new division to provide independent oversight and analysis of the market," Khan explained. "This new division would have the power to subpoena information deemed necessary to root out and address any of the abuses of market power."

The Western States Petroleum Association said in a statement, "This new windfall penalty in this proposal is actually worse than the original bill. The Legislature would be giving away all its authority to a group of unelected bureaucrats who will have the power to set gasoline prices and impact fuels markets. [This] will likely lead to the same unintended consequences as his initial proposal - less investment, less supply, and higher gasoline prices for Californians."

Steven Hernandez, mayor of Coachella, said it is a matter of fairness to the families who live paycheck to paycheck.

"People struggle to afford gas and rent, and to pay medical expenses," Hernandez pointed out. "When we're mindful of the working class, I think we're better off as a society."

The California Energy Commission watchdog would analyze data to look for patterns of misconduct or price manipulation. The bill would also start a rule-making process at the Commission, to set a reasonable profit margin and impose a penalty for price-gouging above the margin. Any fines would be returned to taxpayers.


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