'Fracking' advocates, critics gearing up in Michigan

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The fight over "fracking" is coming to Michigan, along with a significant environmental test for the Great Lakes State's Republican governor.

House Democrats on Wednesday plan to discuss a bill that would regulate what's also known as hydraulic fracturing, a method of extracting natural gas underground. The House's natural gas subcommittee released a report Tuesday encouraging more natural gas production.

The discussion has been muted in Michigan compared with other states, where furious debates have erupted. A few exploratory wells have been drilled into a shale formation covering much of the northern Lower Peninsula.

Gov. Rick Snyder's senior adviser Bill Rustem says the administration will review the report and bill. Rustem says Michigan has tough laws related to energy exploration and sees that continuing.