Jay's Real Estate Blog

Maryland chambers approve separate fracking bills

ANNAPOLIS, Md.—Legislation that limits when and how fracking could take place in Maryland passed Tuesday in both chambers of the state legislature.

Senators voted 29–17 for a bill that holds drilling companies strictly liable for injuries to residents or their property, and in the case of legal action companies would have to disclose what chemicals they use for drilling.

In a 93–45 House vote, delegates supported a three-year moratorium on the drilling practice and called for establishing a scientific review panel to look at impacts to public health and the environment.

“These bills are not mutually exclusive. I think there’s much more study that needs to be done on this, particularly the public health effects and environmental effects of fracking,” said Sen. Robert Zirkin, a Democrat from Baltimore County who sponsored the liability legislation. “The law we just passed from the Senate holds the correct people responsible if there is damage. Why should taxpayers be on the hook for environmental damage caused by the industry?”

Tiny houses starting to make a big impact on housing market

BALTIMORE – How much space do you need to live?

If you’re a tiny house enthusiast, not a whole lot.

“It’s about smart living, not big living,” Garrett County home builder Bill Thomas said.

Thomas, the founder of Hobbitat, constructs homes between 300 and 600 square feet, though many so-called tiny homes are even smaller. Hobbitat’s smallest homes are in Deep Creek Lake’s Blue Moon Rising ecotourism resort, while the “Hobs” designed for full-time living run bigger.

They are still a far cry from the average U.S. home, which is around 2,600 square feet, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Fracking moratorium bill fends off amendments, heads to vote

A bill to place a three-year moratorium on fracking in Maryland survived eight amendments and is headed to a vote in the House of Delegates.

On Monday, the Protect Our Health and Communities Act dodged attempts by House Republicans to change the legislation and make it easier for fracking to start in western Maryland. Currently there is no fracking in Maryland.

Swallow Falls State Park

Check out The Weather Channel list for the Best Watering Holes in every state!

http://www.weather.com/travel/news/swimming-every-state

Swallow Falls State Park is tops in Maryland!

Fracking - The Health Effects

The Garrett County Commissioners met on Tuesday. The presentation that was given by Dr. Ann Bristow is now online.

Click here for more information: http://garrettcounty.org/resources/commissioners/pdf/GaCo_Comm_3-17-15-(2).pdf

Md. Senate kills effort to weaken proposed resistrictions on fracking

ANNAPOLIS — A key amendment offered by Republican Sen. George Edwards to weaken a bill that could restrict the process of drilling for gas in Western Maryland was defeated on the Senate floor Thursday.

The bill, sponsored by Democratic Sen. Bobby Zirkin, D-Baltimore County, seeks to hold energy companies responsible for any damages from hydraulic fracturing, a drilling process that is used in states such as Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a process by which water, sand and chemicals are pumped underground to fracture rock and release natural gas.

Senators hotly debate language in fracking bill

ANNAPOLIS, Md. —The debate over whether to allow fracking in Maryland lit up the state Senate chamber Wednesday.

Legislators from western Maryland oppose a bill that would hold fracking companies accountable for any damage done during the process, saying it would kill any chances of cashing in on natural gas deposits in the state.

Spirited debate came to an abrupt halt when the Senate decided to seek the state attorney general’s opinion on disputed language in the bill.

Fracking extracts natural gas from Marcellus shale, which can be found underneath of nearly all of Garrett County and parts of Allegany County. A Towson University study finds tapping into Marcellus shale could infuse billions into the western Maryland economy.

Md. schools superintendent visiting Garrett robotics lab

ACCIDENT, Md. (AP) – Maryland State Schools Superintendent Lillian Lowery is visiting a robotics laboratory in far western Maryland that produced a regional championship team two years in a row.

She’s visiting the Garrett Engineering And Robotics Society building in Accident Wednesday. Her visit is part of a tour highlighting science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs in Garrett and Allegany county schools.

Fracking in Maryland needs to be stopped before it begins

Well it looks as if hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is going to make its debut in Maryland in the near future. After conducting a three-year long study concerning the potential effects of fracking on Maryland, former governor Martin O’Malley declared the state fit to frack just before leaving office. His successor Larry Hogan has also expressed his desire to start drilling in the very near future. While fracking might create short-term jobs and tax revenues, Maryland needs to realize the costs will far outweigh the benefits. Fracking will only destroy the state’s environment and worsen its already outdated infrastructure.

The process of fracking involves drilling about a mile and a half into the ground, injecting water into the well created by the drill in order to crack the shale bedrock and extract the gas within it. It’s a process that threatens the environment above and below the ground.

The biggest danger inherent in the fracking process is the possibility of leakages in the pipes, which would cause gas to seep into shallow rock layers and private wells, creating the possibility of it ending up in peoples’ faucets. When the contaminated water arrives at the tap, it becomes flammable.

The chemicals in the byproducts of the gas consist of benzene, xylene toluene, and methane; all of which are known to cause cancer, birth defects and nervous system disorders. Since fracking is such a recently developed process, there are also possible long-term risks that are still largely unknown. According to the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, a non-profit devoted to “building a movement to solve the climate crisis in Maryland, D.C., and Virginia,” doctors are already connecting fracking to numerous health problems like respiratory illness and increased infant mortality.

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