Fracking, which is short for hydraulic fracturing, is a process used by the oil and gas industry to extract natural gas from rocky strata located thousands of feet below the earth's surface. The process involves pumping water, sand, and toxic chemicals underground, all in the name of producing "cheap" energy. At SDTN, we care deeply about our planet and the life it sustains. Even though fracking may not be happening in your community, it is certain to affect our oceans. Here are five reasons we all need to be worried about its consequences.
1. Fracking Causes Habitat Disruption
Some of America's most spectacular landscapes are coveted for their resources, including for the pockets of natural gas lying beneath them. In areas managed by the Bureau of Land Management in the western Rocky Mountains, including Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico, oil and gas companies are not disclosing information about the chemicals (including carcinogens) they are using, or about the volume of chemicals they are using, until after drilling has concluded. Just entering some of these wild places causes disruption. Fracking magnifies that disruption and can harm local people, too.
2. Fracking Pollutes the Air and Contributes to Ocean Acidification
Residents living in Garfield County, Colorado, have been exposed to air pollutants including toxic hydrocarbons and the carcinogen, benzene. Both of these chemicals cause respiratory and neurological complications. The problem doesn't stop there. When fossil fuels, including natural gas are burned, about 30% of the carbon dioxide they emit is absorbed by water, including ocean water. That causes the water's pH to drop, causing water to become more acidic.
3. Fracking Contributes to Global Warming
No matter where you live, or where you dive, you're ultimately affected by global warming. All of us are. Methane is one of the most significant of all air pollutants, as it traps between 20 and 25 time more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide does. The footprint of shale gas is about 20 percent higher than that of coal.
4. Fracking Companies Go Out of their Way to Find Loopholes in Laws
Even though there are laws in place designed to protect water, those laws vary from place to place. In most states where fracking is becoming common, there's no disclosure about the chemicals being used, so if a leak happens, and public water sources are contaminated, fracking companies don't have to take responsibility. In some instances, they are using "trade secret" laws to avoid disclosing information about the type and amount of chemicals they are pumping into the earth.
5. Water and Chemicals Flow Downstream
If there's just one lesson everyone should have learned by now, that is that everything flows downstream. Eventually, it all comes out in the wash. With fracking, water pollution is inevitable. Even though proponents say it's safe, farmers are reporting that their animals have become sick or died after being exposed to fracking waste water, and so have wild animals. A recent EPA report showed that fracking had contaminated ground water in Wyoming, and in Pennsylvania, wells near fracking sites became contaminated with methane. Eventually, this water ends up flowing down to the oceans, where it will certainly have a negative effect on marine life.
Evidence suggests that the risky process of fracking affects the air we breathe and the food we eat, not to mention the water we need for life and the climate we all depend on. So, tell your elected representatives how you feel. Fracking is still a relatively new process, and if we all push back, the companies trying to sell us on its safety won't win. The time to turn the tide is now.