NY sues feds over Delaware River natural gas drilling

New York's attorney general is suing the federal government to compel a full environmental review of proposed regulations for natural gas drilling in the Delaware River Basin.

Eric Schneiderman says in the federal lawsuit that the welfare of those living in the basin, and millions of New Yorkers who rely on its drinking water, must be thoroughly weighed.

He says the Delaware River Basin Commission, with approval of federal agencies, proposed regulations without doing a full review as required by law.

Gas is being extracted in the Northeast with a process called hydraulic fracturing. It involves releasing trapped gas by pumping huge volumes of water plus small amounts of chemicals and sand into the ground.

Messages left for the commission and corps were not immediately returned. The suit is being filed Tuesday in Brooklyn.