A Madison County judge is mulling over whether to grant a preliminary injunction to stop new rules for high-volume oil and gas drilling from taking effect.
A group of landowners filed a lawsuit last week, claiming the Department of Natural Resources violated several procedures as it wrote rules to implement a state law regulating hydraulic fracturing. Among the allegations is that the DNR didn’t consider scientific studies and there was no agency representative available to answer residents’ questions at public hearings.
The judge likely will rule by Friday, when the Secretary of State’s office could publish the rules as official.