For Dimock, The Verdict Is In

In an update to the ongoing saga of federal overreach in Dimock, Pa., the Environmental Protection Agency has released results of drinking water testing at 11 area homes that activists claim were polluted by natural gas drilling.

Earlier this year, the EPA abruptly stepped in to supply drinking water to some of the homes in question, despite the conclusion by Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection that any concerns had been resolved by the installation of water treatment systems paid for by the drilling company. The issue has since been used as a scare tactic by celebrity anti-fracking activists calling into question the safety of the entire gas drilling industry.

Today, the verdict is in and no less than the Sierra Club has expressed disappointment that tests, “failed to show elevated levels of contamination,” confirming DEP’s initial conclusion. Maybe next time the EPA will think before they act, and avoid disrupting local economies like Dimock’s, which has faced a costly drilling moratorium throughout the investigation.