New York fracking ban 'a flesh wound'

The decision of New York state governor Andrew Cuomo's administration in December to ban hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in the state is unlikely to have a major impact on the state's upstream sector, but it is another weapon for anti-fracturing campaigners in the US and the rest of the world

The ban follows the delivery of a report commissioned by the state administration, which concluded the health risks of fracking were too great to permit it to go ahead safely, based on consideration of the potential for water contamination, methane emissions and other environmental factors. Howard Zucker, the state's health commissioner, said there was insufficient scientific information to conclude that fracking is safe. New York and Vermont are the only US states to ban fracking so far.  Cuomo's prediction that the decision would unleash 'a ton of lawsuits' against the state is unlikely to be realised - at least in terms of action from the industry's big guns. New York imposed a moratoriu