Anti-fracking initiative qualifies for November ballot

The Monterey County anti-fracking initiative received enough validated signatures to qualify for the November 2016 ballot.

The Monterey County Registrar of Voters will deliver the news to the Monterey County Board of Supervisors on June 1. Supervisors will then decide whether to put the initiative on the ballot or adopt it themselves.

The group Protect Monterey County collected more than 16,000 signatures. Only 500 were needed to move to ballot.

Fracking is banned in Santa Cruz and San Benito Counties.

For more information on the initiative, technically called Protect Our Water: Ban Fracking and Limit Risky Oil Operations,click here.

On Wednesday, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders will speak at a press conference on fracking in Spreckels. This comes after he voiced his opposition to it during his campaign stop in Santa Cruz on Tuesday. The event is closed to the public.