State Lawmakers Approve ‘Fracking’ Regulations

HOUSTON (AP) _ Texas is poised to become the first state to require natural gas drillers to disclose the chemicals they use in the hydraulic fracturing process that helps release minerals from tight rock formations.

The Texas House passed the bill on a final reading Thursday. The bill goes to the Senate, which is expected to approve the measure.

If the bill becomes law, operators would be required to disclose and post on a website the chemicals they use in the process of hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking.” Other states and the U.S. Congress have been considering similar laws.

When fracking, operators pump large amounts of chemical-laced water into the rock, which breaks it up and allows minerals to flow.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)

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