Hydraulic factoring is a process used to extract natural gas from shale formations. This process has been used commercially since the 1940s, but has recently become prevalent as more shale formations have been discovered, specifically the Marcellus Shale formation in Pennsylvania. Although natural gas is a relatively clean source of domestic energy, there have been numerous allegations of water contamination caused by hydraulic fracturing, and several lawsuits have been filed as a result. Two of these suits (Berish v. Southwestern Energy Production Co. and Fiorentino v. Cabot & Gas) are pending in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Both complaints seek recovery under a strict liability cause of action—asserting that hydraulic fracturing is an "ultrahazardous and abnormally dangerous" activity. Although it is unlikely that the court will adopt a strict liability framework in deciding these cases, this Note argues that such a framework is both legally appropriate and beneficial to helping balance our energy needs and the importance of clean water. These pending cases will likely set the standard for future hydraulic fracturing contamination cases in Pennsylvania, and potentially across the United States.
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机译：水力分解是一种用于从页岩地层中提取天然气的过程。自1940年代以来，该方法已在商业上使用，但随着发现更多的页岩地层，特别是宾夕法尼亚州的Marcellus页岩地层，最近已变得越来越普遍。尽管天然气是一种相对清洁的家用能源，但有许多指控指称由于水力压裂而造成的水污染，因此提起了几项诉讼。其中两项诉讼（Berish诉Southwestern Energy Production Co.和Fiorentino诉Cabot＆Gas诉）正在美国宾夕法尼亚州中区地方法院审理。两种投诉都在严格责任原因下寻求恢复-断言水力压裂是“极度危险和异常危险”活动。尽管法院在判决这些案件时不太可能采用严格的责任框架，但本说明指出，这种框架在法律上既适当又有利于帮助平衡我们的能源需求和清洁水的重要性。这些悬而未决的案件可能会为宾夕法尼亚州乃至整个美国将来的水力压裂污染案件设定标准。
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