For the first time, a scientific study has linked natural gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing with a pattern of drinking water contamination so severe that some faucets can be lit on fire.

The peer-reviewed study, published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, stands to shape the contentious debate over whether drilling is safe and begins to fill an information gap that has made it difficult for lawmakers and the public to understand the risks.

This is an update to the recent release titled “BP gets British Columbia drill license 3 days after Deepwater Tragedy”

Wildsight learned yesterday that BP has already begun an exploratory drilling program 22 kilometers northeast of Fernie at Fir Creek.

Oil and gas development in Wyoming has been planned in a "piecemeal" fashion thus far, sometimes on a well-by-well basis, biologists and conservationists argued Friday.

Future, more responsible development calls for a much broader, science-based approach, they said.

Day two of the Responsible Energy Development Symposium, spearheaded by Trout Unlimited, featured presentations and discussions on reducing harm to wildlife and other natural resources, and reclaiming wild habitat during and after drilling and extraction is through.

The three-day gathering at Jackson Lake Lodge has drawn more than 180 participants so far. It concludes today with an all-day field trip to the Jonah and Pinedale Anticline natural gas fields in the Upper Green River Valley.

Bill Bennett Speaks about Coalbed Methane. He makes some blatantly untruthful statements about the BP Open House.

If you were at the open house you should write to him and ask him why he chose to lie about what happened at the open house that he didn't attend.

Experiment with coalbed methane (CBM) drilling at the expense of wildlife? Community members and scientists specializing in CBM impacts say the experiment is not worth the risk.

Research scientist from the University of Montana Erin Sexton states CBM drilling in wildlife-rich areas such as the Flathead and Elk Valleys will inevitably lead to loss of wildlife.

“It’s insincere for industry to claim that you can have commercial CBM and long-term wildlife populations. The two are not compatible,” says Sexton. “You can either have CBM operations or healthy wildlife populations, not both. It may not happen within the first five years, but over time, we’ll lose the wildlife.”