Invoking tribal health and cultural survival, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians has declared a ban on fracking on its sovereign land in what is today North Carolina.
“The Eastern Band of Cherokees will not permit or authorize any person, corporation or other legal entity to engage in hydraulic fracturing on Tribal trust lands,” reads part of the text of a resolution passed unanimously by the Tribal Council last month and signed into law by Principal Chief Mitchell Hicks on September 10. “The State of North Carolina is without legal authority to permit hydraulic fracturing on Tribal trust lands.”
Tribal officials cited the importance to preservation of the woodland habitats that are the underpinning of tribal health and culture.
“Our tribe has taken a strong stand with the resolution against hydraulic fracturing commonly known as fracking,” said Chief Hicks in a statement from the band. “I signed the resolution because I believe our environmental protection is paramount to the survival of our people.”
The health effects of fracking that could stem from environmental damage are among the main concerns, according to tribal leaders. Fracking, a nickname for hydraulic fracturing, involves the injection of chemicals mixed with water deep underground to loosen hard-to-extract crude oil and natural gas from between layers of shale. Opponents fear it can damage drinking water, and some evidence has surfaced to indicate that the practice can cause earthquakes.
The tribe is one of many local governments that have adopted resolutions to ban fracking within their boundaries, but given its sovereign status, its measure is the only one with teeth. Until June, there was a statewide moratorium on the controversial practice,
The state legislature lifted that and added a clause that forbid local governments from outlawing the extraction method. The Eastern Band of Cherokee also supports a statewide ban on fracking, the resolution stated.
In the US, both sides on the fracking issue are going to have to measure risk against advantages. Risk can be minimized through analysis of the water supply and also earthquake faultlines. The possibility of exiting the MIddle East because the US no longer needs their oil is particularly enticing at this moment.
