A father and son who own the mineral rights to 164 acres of land in New York are suing the state in federal court to challenge its ban on fracking.
The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of New York, argues that the state’s ban on fracking is unconstitutional because it deprives the two of productive use of their property, amounting to an unfair taking by the government.
“The state’s regulatory framework for oil and gas was designed to govern the manner of extraction … not to prohibit extraction altogether,” the lawsuit reads. “The State has systematically banned high-volume hydraulic fracturing and effectively made it impossible to develop these resources.”
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The plaintiffs are asking the court to block the state from enforcing the ban.
