By: Alex Lee

Fracking

Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking”, is the process of drilling and injecting fluid into the ground at a high pressure in order to fracture shale rocks to release the natural gas inside.

What is Fracking?

Fracking is a way to obtain natural gas from under layers of shale rock. Natural gas is a fossil fuel, but is said to be a cleaner burning fossil fuel. It is more eco-friendly to burn natural gas, which is primarily methane, than it is to burn coal or oil. Natural gas can serve as an alternative to coal and oil in fueling our lives. Since it is a cleaner burning fuel, people think we should make a switch to it as soon as possible.

Why do we Frack?

• In the past decade, the use of fracking has transformed America’s energy industry. In 2000, shale made up one percent of American’s gas supplies; in 2011 it was 25 percent. Natural gas is cleaner than America’s other two primary sources of energy, coal and oil, and while more expensive than coal, is far cheaper than oil.

• The shale boom has also helped regions that are suffering economically, creating 72,000 jobs in Pennsylvania between 2009 and 2011.

What are the benefits?

• The chemicals that are injected into shale deposits during fracking in the U.S include acids, detergents and poisons that can be harmful if they seep into drinking water. Trucking and storage accidents have caused spills of fracking fluids and the salty water used –called brine– also resulting in contaminated drinking water. Gas companies often do not disclose the composition of their fracking chemicals, making it difficult to monitor the risks of each fracking project. Methane gas can also escape during fracking, creating the possibility of dangerous explosions

Risks of Fracking

• The main concern with fracking is the fact that the drills can hit water sources and contaminate our water. 60-80% of the toxic water and fluids both used for and resulting from fracking remains underground. Also gas companies claim the natural gas that is found from fracking is a clean source of energy. This is only partially correct because while natural gas does burn more cleanly, the extraction process of fracking releases a lot of methane (CH4) into the atmosphere and Methane is known to be amongst the leaders in greenhouse gasses.

Risks of Fracking Cont’d

• Up to 600 chemicals are used in fracking fluid, including known chemicals such as; lead, uranium, mercury, radium, methanol, hydrochloric acid, and formaldehyde.

Known Chemicals

• During the fracturing of shale rocks, methane gas and toxic chemicals leach out from the system and contaminate nearby groundwater.

• Methane concentrations are 17x higher in drinking water wells near fracturing sites than in normal wells

Water Contaminations

• Contaminated well water is used for drinking water in nearby cities and towns.

• There have been over 1,000 documented cases of water contamination next to areas of gas drilling as cases of sensory, respiratory, and neurological damage due to ingested contaminated water.

Drinking Water

• Only 30-50% of the fracturing fluid is recovered, the rest of the toxic fluid is left in the ground and is not biodegradable.

What is left behind in the fractures?

• The waste fluid is left in open air pits to evaporate, releasing harmful VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) into the atmosphere, creating contaminated air, acid rain, and ground level ozone.

What happens to collected fluids?

Thanks to loopholes and exemptions there are no federal regulations. The 2005 Energy Policy Act provides the oil and gas industry with sweeping exemptions from provisions in the major federal environmental statues intended to protect human health and the environment, including the:

• Safe Drinking Water Act

• Clean Water Act

• Clean Air Act

• National Environment Policy Act

• Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act

No federal regulation

• Resource Conservation & Recovery Act

• Toxic Release Inventory under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act

No federal regulation cont’d

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51wOisfdIPo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qKadxyMOYY

Youtube Videos

http://www.thinkbeforeyoufrack.org/about-hydrofracking/

http://www.dangersoffracking.com/

http://www.what-is-fracking.com/

http://dontfrackwithny.com/what-is-fracking/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51wOisfdIPo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qKadxyMOYY

References