The Pros And Cons Of Fracking
The Fracking Controversy A controversial new method of extracting natural gas from the earth has become a danger for Americans. This method is called Hydraulic Fracturing, or Fracking. This drilling has made it possible to retrieve methane gas trapped in the shale rock that lays thousands of feet below the ground. For some, fracking can be seen as a good thing for our country. Fracking is boosting the nation’s economy, creating jobs and energy export opportunities, and strengthening the energy independence of the United States. Although it may help in some aspects, it comes at a very high cost to the American people. Fracking is extremely harmful to the water supply, the environment, and the population. Fracking requires anywhere from two to nine million gallons of water to be used during every application. Once used, the water becomes toxic waste due to the many chemicals used in the process. About half of the water stays underground, while the other half comes back up through the well. The water that comes back up the well brings toxic chemicals and radioactive
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sediments along with it. The toxic water is then either taken away to be treated, or put back into the ground. Given the high volume of waste water, it all cannot be treated. There is no way to return the toxic water back to the natural water supply, and there has not been a plan set up as to where this water is going.
The New York Times reported in 2011 that treatment plants in Pennsylvania, overwhelmed by shale gas wastewater they could not fully treat, discharged water containing radioactive waste into Monongahela and Susquehanna rivers, which together provide drinking water for nearly seven million people. (Fracking)
Leaks of the waste water and accidents during drilling have polluted rivers, streams, and drinking water supplies. Many news channels have shown citizens of the polluted areas putting a flame to their tap water and seeing it combust due to the methane and other hazardous chemicals that have made way into the water supply. There is no safe drinking water for the citizens living in the contaminated areas to drink; all water consumed by the people and the animals have to be bottled. After several complaints that the resident’s water had turned brown shortly after the fracking began, some gas companies even provided them with replacement water to drink. The EPA and other federal health officials cautioned residents living near drilling areas not to drink the water and to even ventilate their homes when bathing due to the methane in the water, which could cause explosions.
While fracking is polluting the water, it is also polluting the air.
Recently in an article titled “Fracking, 2013,” it was reported that potentially toxic chemicals – including cancer-causing benzene – have been found in the air near fracking sites. (Polsen) Regions containing many drilling rigs have high levels of smog as well as other airborne pollutants, including potential carcinogens, which are substances directly involved in causing cancer. Benzene and other chemicals that irritate eyes and cause headaches, sore throats, or difficulty breathing were found in the air near the wells as well. Many people have become incredibly sick because of where they live. When these residents look to the government for help, the only answer they receive is to simply move out of their homes. Some people have resided in the same home their entire lives and refuse to leave, thus becoming
sicker.
Natural gas extraction has been linked to seismic instability along with many small earthquakes in regions where fracking is taking place. The earthquakes are almost certainly man-made and are an enormous hazard to our planet and communities. Researchers believe that the increase in the number of wells drilled, the widespread use of fracking, and the disposal of used fluids are all contributing factors. (Horwitt) The injection of waste water from fracking can induce seismic activity by changing pressure along fault lines. Even with the price of gasoline rising tremendously, and the pressure to rush with the drilling, we cannot afford to have earthquakes risk homes and health.
It is quite scary to think of the amount of natural gas drilling taking place in our country. The fact that natural gas is such an abundant resource in our country and is a growing necessity to the economy, the immensely hazardous side effects that come with this action have been carefully hidden from the American people. It seems to some that no matter how harmful it is to certain people, the money is there to be retrieved, therefore the government will do whatever they need to do, hurt whomever they have to, to retrieve the prize. The rapid development of hydraulic fracture drilling has been disastrous. Federal and State officials have been asleep at the wheel as gas companies pollute the air and water of the communities living in the drilling areas. It is certain that this will be an ongoing issue for quite some time. Hopefully the corporations behind these operations will find a safer way to acquire the natural gas that is so important to our economy.
Kandice Wilson
English 101
Mary Parr
10/31/13
Works Cited
"Fracking." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2012.
Polson, Jim, and Jim Efstathiou. "Fracking Pollutes the Air with Hazardous Chemicals." Fracking. Ed. Tamara Thompson. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At Issue. Rpt. from "Fracking Wells ' Air Emissions Pose Health Risks, Study Finds." 2012.
Horwitt, Dusty, and Alex Formuzis. "Fracking Causes Seismic Instability and Earthquakes." Fracking. Ed. Tamara Thompson. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At Issue. Rpt. from "USGS: Recent Earthquakes 'Almost Certainly Manmade '—Report Implicates Oil and Natural Gas Drilling." 2012.
sediments along with it. The toxic water is then either taken away to be treated, or put back into the ground. Given the high volume of waste water, it all cannot be treated. There is no way to return the toxic water back to the natural water supply, and there has not been a plan set up as to where this water is going.
The New York Times reported in 2011 that treatment plants in Pennsylvania, overwhelmed by shale gas wastewater they could not fully treat, discharged water containing radioactive waste into Monongahela and Susquehanna rivers, which together provide drinking water for nearly seven million people. (Fracking)
Leaks of the waste water and accidents during drilling have polluted rivers, streams, and drinking water supplies. Many news channels have shown citizens of the polluted areas putting a flame to their tap water and seeing it combust due to the methane and other hazardous chemicals that have made way into the water supply. There is no safe drinking water for the citizens living in the contaminated areas to drink; all water consumed by the people and the animals have to be bottled. After several complaints that the resident’s water had turned brown shortly after the fracking began, some gas companies even provided them with replacement water to drink. The EPA and other federal health officials cautioned residents living near drilling areas not to drink the water and to even ventilate their homes when bathing due to the methane in the water, which could cause explosions.
While fracking is polluting the water, it is also polluting the air.
Recently in an article titled “Fracking, 2013,” it was reported that potentially toxic chemicals – including cancer-causing benzene – have been found in the air near fracking sites. (Polsen) Regions containing many drilling rigs have high levels of smog as well as other airborne pollutants, including potential carcinogens, which are substances directly involved in causing cancer. Benzene and other chemicals that irritate eyes and cause headaches, sore throats, or difficulty breathing were found in the air near the wells as well. Many people have become incredibly sick because of where they live. When these residents look to the government for help, the only answer they receive is to simply move out of their homes. Some people have resided in the same home their entire lives and refuse to leave, thus becoming
sicker.
Natural gas extraction has been linked to seismic instability along with many small earthquakes in regions where fracking is taking place. The earthquakes are almost certainly man-made and are an enormous hazard to our planet and communities. Researchers believe that the increase in the number of wells drilled, the widespread use of fracking, and the disposal of used fluids are all contributing factors. (Horwitt) The injection of waste water from fracking can induce seismic activity by changing pressure along fault lines. Even with the price of gasoline rising tremendously, and the pressure to rush with the drilling, we cannot afford to have earthquakes risk homes and health.
It is quite scary to think of the amount of natural gas drilling taking place in our country. The fact that natural gas is such an abundant resource in our country and is a growing necessity to the economy, the immensely hazardous side effects that come with this action have been carefully hidden from the American people. It seems to some that no matter how harmful it is to certain people, the money is there to be retrieved, therefore the government will do whatever they need to do, hurt whomever they have to, to retrieve the prize. The rapid development of hydraulic fracture drilling has been disastrous. Federal and State officials have been asleep at the wheel as gas companies pollute the air and water of the communities living in the drilling areas. It is certain that this will be an ongoing issue for quite some time. Hopefully the corporations behind these operations will find a safer way to acquire the natural gas that is so important to our economy.
Kandice Wilson
English 101
Mary Parr
10/31/13
Works Cited
"Fracking." Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection. Detroit: Gale, 2012.
Polson, Jim, and Jim Efstathiou. "Fracking Pollutes the Air with Hazardous Chemicals." Fracking. Ed. Tamara Thompson. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At Issue. Rpt. from "Fracking Wells ' Air Emissions Pose Health Risks, Study Finds." 2012.
Horwitt, Dusty, and Alex Formuzis. "Fracking Causes Seismic Instability and Earthquakes." Fracking. Ed. Tamara Thompson. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At Issue. Rpt. from "USGS: Recent Earthquakes 'Almost Certainly Manmade '—Report Implicates Oil and Natural Gas Drilling." 2012.