Romanian Officials Express Support for Shale Gas Exploration in Spite of Protests

Romanian government officials this week expressed support for shale gas exploration in the country, despite protests by residents of Vaslui County, where US oil giant Chevron has received a permit to drill an exploratory borehole.Residents of the village of Pungesti, joined by environmentalists from all over the country, had demonstrated against giving approval for Chevron’s exploration activity, saying it could contaminate the region's drinking water sources. On October 19, they marked “Global Frackdown Day” with nationwide protests against the hydraulic fracturing method of natural gas extraction...