Newly introduced Democratic bill would ban drilling under Ohio state parks and Lake Erie

OHIO, USA — Ohio Democratic lawmakers want to prevent oil and natural gas drilling under Lake Erie and state parks.

State Reps. Tristan Rader, D-Lakewood, and Christine Cockley, D-Columbus, recently introduced Ohio House Bill 399 .

The bill would prohibit the director of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources from issuing a permit that would remove oil or natural gas from under a state park or Lake Erie.

“Protecting our environment is just a critically important thing,” Rader said. “I think protecting our public lands, conserving the space we’ve already decided should be conserved, is actually a pretty salient idea.”

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed a bill into law in 2023 that allowed fracking for natural gas in Ohio’s public lands and state parks. Since then, fracking has begun