The Guardian, By: Terry Macalister, 12/13/2013

Anti-fracking protesters clash with police at drilling site near Manchester. The FDA, which first proposed a ban in 1977, has told pharmaceutical companies that manufacture medically important antibiotics given to animals to voluntarily withdraw them from use as growth promoters. The manufacturers have three years to change labels on the antibiotics and other antimicrobials to state that they can only be given to animals for veterinary reasons, and prescribed by a vet.

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By: Jacob Chamberlain, 12/05/2013

Following major Election Day victories for anti-fracking campaigners in Colorado last month when four cities voted to ban the controversial oil and gas drilling technique, fossil fuel industry players have refused to accept defeat and are initiating legal battles that could potentially see those voter-approved referendums overturned. As Al Jazeera-America reports, the Colorado Oil and Gas Association (COGA) filed a lawsuit this week against the towns of Lafayette and Fort Collins, arguing that voters violated a state law they say protects the fracking industry when they passed their respective referendums. “It's not a surprise that the Colorado Oil & Gas Association would take this position,” Laurie Kadrich, director of community development and neighborhood services for the city of Fort Collins, told Bloomberg. “As a city, we have a responsibility to defend the voter-approved ordinance, so we’ll be looking into the contents of the lawsuit and we’ll respond appropriately,” Kadrich said.

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By: RT.com, 12/03/2013

US energy giant Chevron has resumed its search for shale gas in north-eastern Romania after hundreds of riot police reportedly brutally removed a bunch of villagers who had been camping out at the site protesting the company’s plan. Back in October, Chevron suspended its plans to drill an exploration well for shale gas in the village of Pungesti – which is believed to be sitting on vast reserves of the valuable natural resource. To prevent Chevron from moving on with the drilling, Pungesti villagers set up a camp in a privately-owned field next to the site where the well was planned to be installed.

For about six weeks the strategy seemed to work, but that changed Monday when Romanian riot police, gendarmes and firemen mobilized forces to break the protesters’ resistance. According to media reports, law enforcers descended on the area early in the morning. Using police and Chevron vehicles, they blocked the road linking the village with the city of Vaslui, and surrounded the protesters camp. 

By: RT.com, 12/01/2013

A snowy standoff took place in New Brunswick between Canada's Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and anti-fracking protesters on Sunday as Elsipogtog community members and their allies continue the fight to protect their land from shale gas exploration. Twitter users captured a lineup of "protectors" facing police along Highway 11 where energy company SWN Resources has trucks conducting seismic testing for shale gas. A similar protest on Highway 11 on Friday blocked the road for hours, and several protesters were arrested for breaching a court injunction by SWN.

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