Democrats in the state House Thursday introduced bills to further regulate fracking in Michigan.
As The Michigan Public Radio Network’s Jake Neher reports, they stopped short of calling for a moratorium on the process.
Representative Sarah Roberts says she and other Democrats recognize natural gas is an important energy source in Michigan.
“We just want to make sure that, as this industry is literally exploding, that we have transparency, accountability,” she says.
The legislation would require natural gas companies to disclose which chemicals they’re using in the fracking process. It would also give local governments more power to restrict the activity.
State officials say existing regulations do enough to keep fracking safe. They say there’s never been a major incident in Michigan related to the process.
Meanwhile, anti-fracking groups are working to put a statewide ban on the process on the 2014 ballot.