<p>HALIFAX – More than 100 protesters marked Earth Day on Friday by calling on the Nova Scotia government to ban hydraulic fracturing, a controversial method of extracting natural gas from underground.</p> <p>The crowd gathered in front of the Nova Scotia legislature. They held placards and chanted slogans against so-called fracking, which they say poses a threat to groundwater and people’s health.</p> <p>Two large banners were draped over the iron fence in front of the legislature. One said “No Compromise Ban Fracking” while the other read “We Love Nova Scotia’s H2O.”</p> <p>Arranged at the foot of one banner were jars of fresh water, each labelled to indicate the areas of the province where they came from.</p> <p>Event organizer Yuill Herbert of citizen’s group Stop Fracking in Nova Scotia said it wouldn’t make sense to allow something that uses large volumes of water while pumping a mix of chemicals into the ground.</p> <p>Herbert said nothing more than an outright ban would do.</p> <p>”I really think we need to be building a green economy in Nova Scotia and not focusing on industries which I think take us backwards,” he said.</p> <p>Fracking involves pumping pressurized water and a variety of chemicals into a gas well to fracture the layers of shale rock to release the natural gas.</p> <p>The government has maintained that no fracking has taken place in Nova Scotia since 2008, although that’s disputed by some critics.</p> <p>The province announced earlier this month that it would conduct a technical and policy review of hydraulic fracturing. The review, which is expected to be completed by early next year, would examine the environmental effects and best practices in other jurisdictions.</p> <p>Natural Resources Minister Charlie Parker has since asked for public input in the form of written submissions that are due June 6.</p> <p>Thom Oommen of the Inverness chapter of the Council of Canadians said he doesn’t trust a process that appears to limit public input.</p> <p>”Just the way it stands now it seems like it’s going to be a room in one of these buildings where government gets together with industry and makes the rules,” said Oommen.</p> <p>He said he would like to see public hearings as part of the process in order to ensure the voices of those opposed are heard.</p> <p>But Annapolis Valley resident Nina Newington said it appeared that with the review process, those opposed have caught the attention of the government.</p> <p>She said a moratorium needs to be put in place until a strategic environmental assessment is conducted.</p> <p>”We have to keep up the pressure as citizens to make sure that we get our voices heard,” said Newington.</p> <p>While there’s been limited shale gas exploration in Nova Scotia, the industry has experienced growth in Alberta and British Columbia over the past decade.</p> <p>There’s also been activity in a host of other provinces although last month the Quebec government announced that it would temporarily ban the use of fracking while it studies the process.</p> <p>Darcy Spady, managing director of Calgary-based St. Brendan’s Exploration, said he’s taken part in the drilling of 14 exploratory wells in New Brunswick since 2000.</p> <p>He said the public should know that the Canadian industry operates responsibly in a regulated environment.</p> <p>Spady believes the Nova Scotia government should consider what is going on elsewhere.</p> <p>”Before we shut everything down in Nova Scotia I think we need to look at British Columbia and Saskatchewan . . . two jurisdictions that have a regulated industry that provides a lot of economic benefit and gas,” said Spady. </p>
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