City municipalities' primary role and legal authority rests mainly upon insuring health and safety standards are enforced for the benefit of its citizens. While the state may have control over licensing of fracking operations, the local people have the right to establish higher environmental standards for everyone within their jurisdiction. That WOULD include the frackers.

That's how it's been done. The frackers don't want to go into court to fight against health standards. They have the states on their sides with it comes to battles over who is in authority. The states will win that battle every time.

But fracking cannot be done when the health standards that have been legally established to apply to everyone, become too costly. And right now would be the best time of all times to go after them with this approach with the market flush with fracking gas and shale oil. The frackers don't have the money to waste on lawyers right now.

''Whomever's in-charge, gets to define everybody else.'' ~Paul Cienfuegos, Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund

Local Communities Dismantling Corporate Rule, part 1

Local Communities Dismantling Corporate Rule, part 2

Local Communities Dismantling Corporate Rule, part 3


K&R