Columbus Freepress - November 7th 2013 Nov 7 2013 | Page 13
microrems per hour.”
After the passage of SB 59, they can
simply bring these drill cuttings to
Ohio.
Now we are fracked
By disposing of the radioactive drill
cuttings as “beneficial” waste, the
fracking industry will pay no fees to the
area’s solid waste district or to the State
of Ohio. Frackers are now relieved of
the burden of paying to dispose of their
radioactive waste in any safe manner.
But the real beauty of “beneficial
use” in the budget bill is that it
exempts this radioactive material from
any requirement that its toxic and
radioactive content be tested.
Who Fracking
Paid for This?
By Gerry Bello
While the votes of politicians
are recorded, even when they
slip through an obscure clause in
the budget, the question of who
influenced them remains. Who
poured them the glass of tainted
water to wash this poison bill down
our throats with the budget? While
it is not technically correct to use
campaign contributions and bribes
interchangeably, there is a tendency
to contribute to politicians who will
support one’s position.
A leading recipient of fracking
money in Ohio is House Speaker
William Batchelder. The cushions
of Batchelder’s house seat are
stuffed with a considerable amount
of fracking money. Since 2006,
James Butler, Christina Hagan,
Peter Stautberg, AL Landis, Jay
Hottinger, Jeffery McClain, Cliff
Rosenberger, Bob Peterson, Louis
Terhar, Timothy Derickson, Dorothy
Pelanda, Mark Romanchuk, Pete
Beck, Gerald Stebelton, Anne
Gonzales, Terry Boose, Mike
Dovilla and Brian Hill. Many
he has received $44,293 from
received only $1000, making
the Ohio Oil and Natural Gas
them not just fracking political
Association, an industry lobbying
prostitutes but cheap fracking
group. The fracking industry also
political prostitutes. Dave Hall is the
supported him directly with $55,000 highest priced after Batchelder at
from FirstEnergy Corp, $26,850
$13,500.00.
from NISOURCE, $26,350 from
Additionally the Ohio Oil and
Dominion, $16,250 from Duke
Natural Gas bought themselves
Energy, $12,500 from Chesapeake
eleven Ohio State Senators with
Energy and $35,750 from American contributions of less than $10,000
Electric Power. A few cents of many each. All are fracking Republicans.
Columbus residents’ power bill
Twenty-one other Ohio House
helps to line Batchelder’s campaign Republicans received $500 or less
fund as he quietly legalizes the
for their support.
injection of radioactive waste into
The fracking money also flowed
our drinking water.
directly to Secretary of State Jon
As the money flows down the
Husted and Governor John Kasich
trough, many other politicians
who signed the budget. Husted
squealed and muscled their way in
received $7,500 directly from
to lap it up. Republican Ohio State
executives of American Electric
Senator Keith Faber received money Power, $5000 from FirstEnergy,
from the Ohio Oil and Natural Gas
$2000 from NiSource, $2500 from
Association and the six companies
Dayton Power and Light and $3000
previously mentioned. He also got
from Vectren.
campaign funding from Spectra
Governor Kasich’s
election in 2010
received big piles
of fracking money,
which continued to
flow after his election.
NISOURCE has given
$20,044. American
Electric Power gave
$20,043. The Ohio
Oil and Natural Gas
Association gave him
$16,396. Duke Energy
gave $11,543. Dominion
helped him with $6,500.
Energy, Vectren, Dayton Power
All in all, Ohio has the best
and Light, Marathon Oil and archfracking politicians money can buy.
polluter British Petroleum.
There appears to be a clear line from
The Ohio Oil and Natural
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