Denton Considers Repealing Unenforceable Fracking Ban
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DENTON (CBSDFW.COM) - The Denton city council will consider repealing its fracking ban Tuesday evening now that a new Texas law makes the ban unenforceable.
House Bill 40 quashed the city's anti-fracking ordinance that Denton voters approved in November with 59 percent of the vote.
For the second straight day on Tuesday, three protesters were arrested for trespassing as they blocked the entrance to a pad site in western Denton where the practice of hydraulic fracking resumed this week.
The protesters are a part of the Frack Free Denton organization.
Along with civil disobedience to try and get its message across, the organization said members will show up in large numbers at Tuesday's city council meeting.
"If the city repeals it, it definitely sends a very disheartening message," said Pauline Raffestin with Frack Free Denton.
Denton Mayor Chris Watts said this is uncharted territory for a city and hopes Tuesday's meeting will provide an opportunity to discuss all the city's options now that HB40 has passed.
Two lawsuits, one from the Texas Oil and Gas Association and the other from the Texas General Land Office, were filed against the City of Denton after the city passed its ban.
It's unclear how dropping the ban would affect the outcome of those suits.
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