Members of the state Mining and Energy Commission will hold their first meeting tomorrow. The 15-member commission was created by a state law passed earlier this year that authorizes natural gas fracking as early as 2014. The commission's role is to create a modern regulatory program for the management of oil and gas exploration and development activities in the state. Marva Mizell Price, a professor at the Duke University School of Nursing, is part of the group.
Marva Mizell Price says, "This is a very important commission. It's going to take individuals like myself and I'm believing the others who've been appointed to really look at the issues involved and really work to safeguard the public's interest as well as the regulations that we have to formulate."
Price says she has been reading extensively about natural gas exploration in preparation for her tenure on the commission. Members serve three-year terms on the board.