Denton - A North Texas city whose fracking ban prompted state lawmakers to limit such local power says a driller has revealed plans to resume fracking gas wells in the city.
According to documents Vantage Energy has notified the city that it lans to begin fracking on Denton's west side, beginning on Wednesday next week. The notice came just after Republican Governor Greg Abbott signed a bill into law that limits the local authority to restrict fracking.
During last November's election, Denton voters banned fracking within the borders of the city of about 125 000 residents, eliciting immediate vows by oil and gas drillers to topple that ban. The state and the drillers filed lawsuits and the legislature fulfilled the drillers' decision last week.
The Denton ban remains on the books, but Mayor Chris Watts says the new state law likely renders it unenforceable and would probably stymie any effort to block Vantage plans to finish its gas wells.