No Fracking Way!

“If the human race is still here in 100 years, it will be because of lots of people doing lots of little things." ~Pete Seeger, in a recent interview with Chronogram

Do you know about fracking? I didn't until about a year ago. What the frick is fracking? You might be asking. Glad you asked. Read this and join me in saying, 'No Fracking Way!"

In simple terms, hydraulic fracturing, or hydro-'fracking' as it is commonly known, is the process of mixing millions of gallons of local clean freshwater together with a cocktail of toxic chemicals and sand and then shooting it deep into the earth to create an artificial earthquake which will create 'fractures' in the rock to allow for the natural gas bubbles to be released. This process has to happen each time a well is fracked. There are roughly 500,000 fracking wells in the US alone.

Let's play one of my favorite games, shall we? It's the game of Let's Ask Some Questions!!! But first, a trailer from the Josh Fox documentary called Gasland. (Notice how Mr. Boren in this clip asks "If we weren't hydraulic fracturing, how much more would we be dependent on foreign oil....and terrorists?" Um...was he an elected official?)



Why are we fracking?
Because natural gas is touted as 'clean' energy and a way to become less dependent on foreign oil. Also, politicians and oil companies endlessly remind us...the natural gas industry and fracking creates jobs!!! Upon closer inspection, however, we learn that fracked natural gas is anything but 'clean', that there is no real safe way to frack, and even the argument that fracking is a viable economic generator doesn't hold water...not even poisoned frack water. In fact, fracking degrades not only the water, air and soil, but also poses serious health threat to humans and animals alike.

What has to happen in order to frack a well?
A natural gas or oil company sends letters to property owners requesting that they grant the company rights to frack on their land in exchange for a sum of money. If granted access, the company must then create the infrastructure to frack on that land, which in involves building structures that look something like this (see right) and in many cases involves building new roads through farms or wooded areas, in order to be able to ship in millions of gallons of local water by truck to mix with their chemicals. So, not only do you have the actual process of fracking, but you have all of the realities that go along with it. For example, the daily drone of trucks and machinery shipping water in, then shipping poison frack water out, people with free access to your property at any time of day or night, and ugly structures dotting what used to be farmland, woodland, and grassy fields.

What happens as a result of fracking?
Remember the fracking fluid, composed of toxic chemicals and used-to-be clean, potable water? The poisonous fracking fluid returns to the surface to be often improperly stored, leaked into the local waterways, or sometimes just dumped onto roads and fields!!! In some places, the air becomes thick and smoggy with what can best be described as a toxic-cloud. Blow-outs and explosions occur. People's wells and other drinking water sources become contaminated, undrinkable, and sometimes even flammable.

Yes, their tap water becomes flammable. With what? you might ask. Methane, as a matter of fact. Methane is a greenhouse gas 72x more potent than CO2. Natural gas the 'clean' energy, hmm? It gets more frightening, my friends. In addition to the toxic brew that is forcibly pumped into the earth and seeps back up or leeches into the soil and waterways, it turns out that when you unnaturally create explosions over 8,000 feet in the earth's crust, other naturally occurring materials come up. You know, like barium, magnesium, methane, uranium, etc. etc. etc. Also known as radioactive material. Perhaps these materials are best left at 8,000 feet?

People become sick with many different types of ailments, including but not limited to losing their hair, losing their sense of taste and smell, developing permanent neurological conditions, brain tumors, debilitating headaches, cancers, and respiratory diseases.

Property loses its value because the air, soil and water on it is not only poisoned, but the property has an ugly-ass fracking well in plain sight on, or close by to it!

The animals begin to lose their hair, develop health conditions similar to those mentioned above for humans, and often simply just die.

What have people been saying whose wells have been fracked?
Many people are speaking out about what has happened to them and their families after they sold the rights to their land to natural gas companies to frack.

They are saying they are getting sick, that they can no longer drink their water, water their plants, take a shower, or cook with the water from their wells.

They are saying that they have to now buy water and have it shipped in. They are saying that it is difficult to get a hold of anyone at the natural gas companies to tell them what is happening and when they do, they are ignored, paid to be silent, and refused compensation for the damages done to their bodies, land, and water. They are saying that they cannot sell their property and get stuck, and some of them have had kids or family members leave their house or area because their daily life has been so disrupted. Read Chrystal Stroud's story from Towanda, PA, released less than one week ago.

A few people are saying it is their land and their right to frack. They need the money. They can't afford to wait for research and studies to be done, they have an offer for a few thousand dollars sitting in front of them! It is an opportunity, and they don't believe in the threat.

Listen to stories from Trailer Talk, brought to you by Sabrina Artel.

What are the Natural Gas and Oil companies saying?
They are saying things like "hydraulic fracturing allows oil producers to safely recover natural gas...reduce our reliance on foreign fuel imports....[and] accelerate our transition to a carbon-light environment" (Marcellus Shale Hydraulic Fracturing Fact Sheet, 2011, Chesapeake). In the aforementioned so-called fact sheet, Chesapeake Oil Company also emphasizes that the cocktail of chemicals is approximately only 1% of the fracking fluid. What they DON'T tell us is what chemicals they use! Instead, they create categories of uses like 'corrosion inhibitor' and 'friction reducer'. What they WON'T tell you (until the subpoena's are forcing them to) is that many of these chemicals are known to cause cancer, tumors, neurological problems, and are endocrine inhibitors. But eh...it's only 1% right?

The America's Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA) put out a sponsored video countering the popular documentary 'Gas Land'. They say we "have something special in this country" (natural gas) and use imagery of family walking in fields, kids jumping on beds, and nature shots to emphasize their commitment to safe environmental practices and "harmony" with nature. (Pumping toxic chemicals and drilling pipes miles into the earth's crust to fracture rock = harmony with nature?)

While calling in to question certain points of the GasLand film, the ANGA absolutely and remarkably fails to address or respond to ANY of the basic claims of the GasLand film...that natural gas drilling is harmful to humans, animals, and the planet. They simply reiterate their 'commitments', provide no data, and tell us how much we need their product. Then they show a nice shot of a family sitting in an un-fracked pristine wooded area.

To contrast it, GasLand shows the filmmaker asking questions from people who live in fracked communities from coast to coast. He lets them tell their story. He let's them show their water, their cloudy air, their dead wildlife. He let's them showcase their ruined lives and moves on to the next fracked town. This is not to say that every detailed claim made by the people shown in the documentary is factually accurate. But the message is overwhelmingly clear....fracking is causing a whole lot of damage in a whole lot of places. The film essentially poses this question to all of us: Are we going to let this continue to happen?

Back to what the natural gas industry is saying...since this question is supposed to be devoted to them after all. In addition to sponsoring ads on YouTube, the Natural Gas companies seem to be saying an awful lot through their lobbying dollars (see chart below). What do you think?

Who benefits from fracking?

Natural Gas Oil companies and their employees benefit financially. Politicians can benefit from financial support of natural gas companies if they support their legislation and many policy makers argue that fracking creates jobs for their constituents and generates income for their state. Individuals who sell rights to the oil companies for drilling benefit minimally financially--initially.

Who loses as a result of fracking?
Individuals and families lose when their land is devalued, water and soil contaminated, and health permanently damaged. Employees of the natural gas industry are shown to have a job-related mortality rate 8 times the annual rate in other US occupations (EPA Hydrofracking Study Plan, 2011, p 56). Animals die when their water becomes contaminated or lose their ancient migratory patterns. We ALL lose because we share water, air, and soil. We also jointly bear the financial and emotional costs when neighbors, family, friends and fellow citizens become sick and even terminally ill as a result of exposure to the toxic chemicals and waste and poison frack fluid.

If it's really that bad, how is it possible that this is happening?
There is no simple answer to this but consider--there are very few federal regulations to protect that land, air and water in the United States. In fact in 2005 President Bush signed the Energy Policy Act that specifically denied the EPA the right to monitor hydrofracking (thank you Dick Cheney for adding that little loophole. How nice of you to do that for your Halliburton friends!). Since then, this decision has been reversed but there are still many policy gaps, lack of human resources and research at a time when the EPA and state environmental protection agencies fund's are being slashed. People are organizing all over the country to demand for studies to be done, demand more transparency from the natural gas industry, and demand that our right to clean air and water be protected, but unfortunately at this time, it is not.

What can I do?
You don't have to be an expert, a scientist, or an activist to decide what you think about fracking. The evidence shows that fracking is NOT a viable way towards clean energy. You can also say this is all ridiculous 'scare mongering' as the natural gas industry has done. (Good luck my fracking friends! Seems to be a risky gamble to me...) The solutions may depend on where you live and how people near you are becoming involved. Writing and calling your representatives at the local, state, and federal level is important! However, many people are getting involved in their town councils and enacting a ban within their town or county...which if your town does the same, NO FRACKING can take place where you live!!! You don't need the state or federal government to pass a bill in order to protect your immediate community. Also, keep in mind that a moratorium is a start but only a ban will prevent fracking from happening.

You can also tell your friends, family and neighbors about this issue and point them to stories like Chrystal Stroud or Craig and Julie Sautner. There is a good chance that if people knew their water and land and even their bodies would be poisoned, that they would say 'NO' to the natural gas companies.

On a more philosophical point, we would do well to use this moment to reflect on how our addiction to fossil fuels is damaging ourselves and the planet. How can we change? How must we change? How must we advocate to those in positions of power and authority in order to secure a sustainable future for ourselves and the next generations? What other questions do we need to ask?

Where can I find more information / (where did you get your information)?

Environmental Protection Agency
Gas Land (Documentary) (Viewed at the Rosendale Theater in Rosendale, NY)
Chesapeake Energy (Media Resources Page)
Frack Action
The Marcellus Effect (Blog)
Shale Gas Fracking: Facts and Figures (The UK Guardian)
Trailer Talk with Sabrina Artel (I met with Sabrina personally on April 30, 2011)
Protecting Our Waters
Frank Finan Picassa Album (many of the photos in this blog are from this album)
Fracking: The Great Gas Shale Rush (BusinessWeek)
Water Withdrawals for Hydrofracking
No Fracking Way! Facebook Group
'Women Fighting Fracking', I attended a session on April 30, 2011 at the Green Feminisms: Women, Sustainability, and Environmental Justice SUNY New Paltz and listened to four women from New York State and Pennsylvania whose neighborhoods are being fracked in New York and Pennsylvania.