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RESOLUTION NO. 2009-15 <br />INTRODUCED BY: Mayor Rinker and Council as a Whole <br />AN EMERGENCY RESOLUTION <br />URGING THE STATE <br />TO PLACE A MORATORIUM <br />ON OIL AND GAS WELI, DRILLING <br />IN HEAVILX POPUI.ATED RESIDEleTTIAI., AREAS <br />UNTIL AMENDMENTS TO THE <br />OHIO REVISED CODE WITH RESPECT TO I)RILI,ING <br />HAVE BEEN MADE. <br />WEMREAS, the Ohio Legislature passed House Bill 278 in 2004 giving the <br />Division of Mineral Resources Management in the Department of Natural Resources <br />exclusive authority to regulate the permitting, location and spacing of oil and gas wells in <br />the state and that the Oil and Gas Law rules adopted under it constitute a comprehensive <br />plan with respect to all aspects of the locating, drilling and operation of oil and gas wells in <br />Ohio, and repealed all statutory authority of local governments to regulate oil and gas <br />exploration and operation; and <br />WBEREAS, the bill repealed all provisions of the then current law that granted or <br />alluded to the authority of local governments to adopt concurrent requirements with the <br />state concerning oil and gas exploration and operation, as well as all provisions limiting <br />that authority. It gave the Division of Mineral Resources Management sole and exclusive <br />authority of regulating the pei-mitting, location, and spacing of oil land gas wells within the <br />State. Further, the bill provided that the regulation of oil and gas activities was a matter of <br />general statewide interest that requires uniform statewide regulation and that the Oil and <br />Gas Law and rules adopted under it constitutes a comprehensive plan with respect to all <br />aspects of the permitting, locating, drilling, and operation of oil and gas wells within Ohio, <br />including site restoration and disposal of wastes from those wells; and <br />WHEREAS, there has been a proliferation of oil and gas well drilling in ?eavily <br />populated residential areas; and <br />WHEREAS, oil and gas well drilling in heavily populated residential areas causes a <br />host of problems including, but not limited to, extreme noise twenty-four hours a day <br />during the drilling process, potential for well water contamination, and potential safety <br />issues for surrounding residents if explosions occur; and