Jayni Foley Hein quoted in Los Angeles Times, June 5, 2014
The prospect of more and bigger accidents is real if immediate changes are not made, warned Jayni Foley Hein….. “The danger is not so much the oil itself as a commodity,” Hein said, “but the sheer number of cars carrying this oil … combined with aging infrastructure.”
Jayni Foley Hein quoted in Bloomberg News, May 21, 2014
“This downgrade fundamentally changes the risk-reward calculation when it comes to unconventional oil development in our state. … Given that the industry’s promised economic benefits are not likely to materialize, the state should take a hard look at the impacts that oil development has on public health, safety and the environment.”
Jayni Foley Hein writes for Los Angeles Times, May 19, 2014
Nationally, the transport of oil by rail is on a steep upward trajectory, largely due to fracking in North Dakota and to drilling in Canada’s Alberta tar sands. And much of the oil being transported is especially dangerous, containing high levels of extremely volatile and combustible vapors.
Janyi Foley Hein quoted in Law 360, April 16, 2014
“We’ve seen mounting concern over fracking,” Hein said. “There has been a groundswell of local moratoria. As that happens, it has helped generate support for a statewide moratorium.”
Jayni Foley Hein quoted in Sunset Magazine, April 2014
“On the East Coast, if we look at the geology, it’s akin to a layer cake,” says Jayni Foley Hein, executive director of the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment at the University of California, Berkeley. “In the Monterey Shale, it’s more akin to a marble cake.”
Michael Kiparsky quoted and Jayni Hein cited in California Lawyer, November, 2013
Kiparsky says there would have to be a huge increase in fracking before it registers as a significant part of the state’s overall water use. “That said, all water is local,” he adds. “The impacts on local water sources could be an issue. We just don’t know at this point.”
A recent article he coauthored with Berkeley Law colleague Jayni Foley Hein states: “Fracturing ‘flowback’ … and ‘produced water’ (all waste-water that emerges from the well after production begins) contain potentially harmful chemicals, some of which are known carcinogens. Produced water is also highly saline and potentially harmful to humans, aquatic life, and ecosystems.”
Jayni Foley Hein quoted in The New York Times, June 1, 2013
“It’s somewhat alarming how little the state knows about the fracking that has occurred in the past and the fracking that continues today,” said Jayni Foley Hein … a co-author of a recent report on fracking in California.
Jayni Foley Hein, Michael Kiparsky quoted in Association of California Water Agencies, May 14, 2013
“Once fracking has been conducted, its effects may be impossible to reverse,” Kiparsky said, adding that “the science remains uncertain, particularly in the face of technology that is rapidly evolving.”
Jayni Foley Hein … added that the regulations put forward in DOGGR’s discussion draft are currently not as robust as those found in other states. She said improvements are needed to the public notice process pertaining to fracking operations, as well as disclosure about “trade-secret” fracking chemicals.
Jayni Foley Hein, Michael Kiparsky write for San Francisco Chronicle, May 12, 2013 (registration required)
New fracturing techniques combined with demand for oil have led to alarming projections of dramatically increased fracking activity in California. Such developments may have outstripped the ability of responsible government agencies to effectively oversee fracking activity and its attendant impacts on our land, air and water resources.
Jayni Hein and Michael Kiparsky’s CLEE report cited in Los Angeles Times, April 11, 2013
“Hydraulic fracturing presents risks to our environment and human health, and must be properly regulated and controlled. This report identifies several areas where the state’s knowledge base and existing regulatory scheme are deficient,” the authors wrote.