N.C. group to discuss fracking, horizontal drilling

Published 7:12 am Wednesday, January 16, 2013

SANFORD (AP) — A study group of the commission that’s studying hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling in North Carolina will meet to discuss regulations for those activities.
The Local Government Regulation Study Group will meet Wednesday at the Lee County Operations Facility in Sanford. The study group is part of the North Carolina Mining and Energy Commission.
The commission is developing regulations for oil and gas exploration and development.
Topics for the meeting include local government regulations elsewhere and the impacts on roads and other infrastructure.
Horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, involve injecting a drilled well with chemically treated water mixed with sand to crack shale rock and free trapped natural gas. The wastewater is often disposed of in separate wells.