PART 2
The ECO warns that “If economically viable reserves of shale gas are confirmed in Ontario, MOE and MNR must ensure that the regulatory framework is sufficient to protect the natural environment and water resources from potential environmental effects.” But he also notes that “while the prospect of a new and plentiful domestic energy resource is appealing, environmental damage could outweigh the energy benefits of increased natural gas supply. Any future development of Ontario’s shale gas resources must be undertaken with the public assurance that the cumulative effects of such development do not have unintended consequences. Given the close proximity of Ontario’s shale formations to groundwater supplies, such development must be cognizant of the reality that, once groundwater is contaminated, remediation may be prohibitively expensive.”

In Recommendation 10, the ECO recommends that MNR and MOE review and publicly report on the sufficiency of the regulatory framework to protect water resources and the natural environment from shale gas extraction. While the Council of Canadians supports a stronger regulatory framework, we oppose fracking because of its high water use, its high carbon emissions, its impacts on human health, the disruption it causes to wildlife, and the danger it poses to groundwater and local drinking water. We are calling for a country-wide stop to fracking operations and therefore call upon the Ontario government to stop issuing permits or licenses needed in the fracking process.