North Carolina is about to move one step closer to fracking. The N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources plans to drill in Stokes County to scope out potential shale-gas reserves in the Dan River Basin.
The selected test site sits on land owned by the town of Walnut Cove, about 2 miles north of the line between Forsyth and Stokes counties.
DENR officials say the drilling will take place over 10 days by June 30.
The Winston-Salem Journal reports the purpose is to explore for shale gas – not to extract it in a process known as fracking.
Exploratory drilling is also scheduled in the Cumberland-Marlboro basin.
Anti-fracking activists say they feel powerless to stop shale-gas development, but still warn of the truck traffic and waste management problems associated with drilling.
There are also concerns that fracking has been linked with seismic activity, which could affect nearby coal ash waste pits at Duke Energy's Belews Creek Steam Station.
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