UK halts fracking ahead of election; some want permanent ban
By GREGORY KATZ Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — The British government announced Saturday that it will no longer allow fracking because of new scientific analysis that casts doubts on the safety of the controversial practice, but some critics called the an election stunt and demanded a permanent ban.
The government said the decision was based on a finding by the Oil and Gas Authority that it is not possible to clearly predict the likelihood or severity of earthquakes linked to fracking operations.
The decision to announce a moratorium on fracking means the government will no longer support the use of fracking for shale gas extraction and fracking planning proposals will not be moved forward.
Business and Energy Secretary Andrea Leadsom said the new scientific report makes clear that the government cannot rule out future “unacceptable impacts” on local communities where fracking is allowed.
“For this reason, I have concluded that we should put a moratorium on fracking in England with immediate effect,” she said.
The government’s new position was announced at the start of what is expected to be a hard-fought campaign ahead of a Dec. 12 national election. There have been considerable protests against fracking in recent years.
The announcement drew praise from local activists and environmental groups although some called for a permanent ban on the practice, not just a halt in the approval process..
Activist Maureen Mills from the Halsall Against Fracking group, said the decision was welcome because fracking had taken an “immeasurable” toll on her region of northwestern England.
“Our communities are left physically and mentally drained and devastated. For what? Years of anguish, research, protest, tears and fears,” she said. “Stopping this industry has always been our goal and our reasons are now being taken seriously.”
But politicians from the opposition Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats warned that the government’s reversal on fracking may be a temporary ploy to garner votes during the upcoming national vote.
Labour Party housing adviser John Healey told the BBC the ban “appears to be temporary” and may be reversed later if Prime Minister Boris Johnson remains in power after the vote.
“This may not be a real reprieve,” he said. “You’ve got to remember that Boris Johnson once said he wanted to leave no stone unturned and no stone unfracked, so this I fear could be a gambit at the start of the election and we may see that he does something different to what he says now.”
Rebecca Newsom, head of politics at Greenpeace, said fracking has no future in Britain because of widespread opposition.
“Opening up a new fossil fuel industry in this climate emergency was always an awful idea and it’s only seemed worse as the industry has lurched from mishap to disaster,” she said. “Grass roots activists across the country deserve huge credit.”

Fire whips through historic Poconos resort; guests evacuate
OkPOCONO MANOR, Pa. (AP) — A wind-whipped fire has destroyed much of a century-old Poconos resort that’s on the National Register of Historic Places.
General Manager Don Snyder calls the damage Friday to the Pocono Manor Resort “heartbreaking.”
No injuries have been reported in the 6 a.m. blaze, which burned throughout the day and toppled the inn’s clock tower.
Officials say guests in about 25 rooms safely evacuated. They believe the fire started in a dining area and quickly spread.
The Monroe County resort is known locally as “the grand lady of the mountains.” Neighbors say it’s one of the last grand resorts in the Poconos.
The inn had been set to close later this month for a two-year renovation.
Pocono Manor was built by Quakers in 1902 and designated a historic site in 1977.
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This story has been corrected to say the inn is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, not the National Registry of Historic Places.

Beto O’Rourke announces he’s dropping 2020 presidential bid
By WILL WEISSERT and JULIE PACE Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — Beto O’Rourke, the former Texas congressman, announced Friday that he was ending his Democratic presidential campaign, which failed to recapture the enthusiasm, interest and fundraising prowess of his 2018 Senate race.
In an online post, O’Rourke said, “My service to the country will not be as a candidate or as the nominee.” He was scheduled to address supporters later Friday at an event in Iowa.
O’Rourke was urged to run for president by many Democrats, including supporters of former President Barack Obama, who were energized by his narrow Senate loss last year in Texas, a reliably Republican state. He raised an astonishing amount of money from small donors across the country, visited every county in Texas and used social media and livestreaming video to engage directly with voters. He ultimately lost to incumbent Republican Sen. Ted Cruz by 3 percentage points.
But O’Rourke struggled to replicate that model in the presidential primary, and both his polling and his fundraising dwindled significantly in recent months.
“Though it is difficult to accept, it is clear to me now that this campaign does not have the means to move forward successfully,” he wrote on Medium. “Acknowledging this now is in the best interests of those in the campaign; it is in the best interests of this party as we seek to unify around a nominee; and it is in the best interests of the country.”
O’Rourke’s decision comes as the Democratic primary enters a critical stretch. With three months until the kickoff Iowa caucuses, polls consistently show a trio of candidates leading the way: former Vice President Joe Biden, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, with Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, showing strength in Iowa, as well. Lower polling candidates face difficult questions about whether they have the money to sustain a campaign through the first primary contests.
Earlier this week, Kamala Harris, another candidate who entered the race to much fanfare, announced she was downscaling her campaign, laying off some staffers and reorienting almost exclusively to focus on Iowa.
O’Rourke entered the race as the feel-good, dynamic candidate who had the ability to appeal to both Republicans and Democrats and work across the aisle in Washington. But he immediately faced criticism that he had a sense of entitlement, particularly after the release of a Vanity Fair interview on the eve of his campaign launch in which he appeared to say he was “born” to be in presidential politics.
He also struggled with consistent vision and messaging as a presidential candidate.
He spent several weeks trying to build his campaign around climate change, calling global warming the greatest existential threat the country had ever faced. After a gunman opened fire at a Walmart in his hometown of El Paso, killing 22 people, O’Rourke more heavily embraced gun control, saying he would take assault weapons away from existing owners.
O’Rourke did not endorse another Democrat for the nomination, saying the country will be well served by any of the other candidates, “and I’m going to be proud to support whoever that nominee is.”
President Donald Trump quickly weighed in on O’Rourke’s exit, saying in a tweet: “Oh no, Beto just dropped out of race for President despite him saying he was “born for this.” I don’t think so!”
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Weissert reported from Des Moines, Iowa.