Opponents of the oil and gas drilling process known as fracking collected some 4,000 signatures to get the issue onto the May ballot. Law Director Anthony Farris says council has no choice but to pass the initiative onto the Mahoning County Board of Elections. But he also says such an initiative is unenforceable even if voters do pass it. That’s because state law leaves regulation of oil and gas drilling in Ohio largely up to the state. 

Mayor Chuck Sammarone says he’s largely neutral when it comes to fracking. He celebrates the tens of thousands of jobs that are expected to come with it. But he also protests the loss of local control.

“City law can’t supersede state law, and they have a state law saying you are allowed to drill. … But I’m trying to get it to a point where we have more input to be in involved in the inspection, the regulations, whatever we feel we have to do to eliminate the problems that are caused in our city.”

Youngstown has been the center of major problems involving the disposal of so-called frac-water, the brine and chemicals left over after shale’s been burst open to capture oil and gas.  One disposal well triggered earthquakes in the area and was ordered closed last year. And the owner of that well is now accused of dumping brine into a tributary of the Mahoning River repeatedly over the last six months.