Something insidious is happening just below ground, affecting potentially millions of people in the United States. Reported health problems, polluted drinking water and other safety hazards, have been documented using a process called gas fracking (or fracing as the actual patent for this technique is spelled), and it appears to be an accepted technique for obtaining the highest yield of natural gas from the 35,000 plus wells that are ‘fracked’ every year [Para 15, line 4].

Many people may never have even heard of gas fracking before. It’s the process whereby huge amounts of water mixed with various chemical compounds, are pumped under deep underground using extremely high pressure, into established natural gas wells. This procedure breaks up the surrounding rock which releases still more gas into the well, and overall it dramatically increases natural gas production [Para 2 & Para 4]. That fact can’t be disputed.

Supposedly, with water and chemicals pumped so deep into the earth, there really should not be any effect on the human population. In fact, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has deemed all chemicals used for fracking as being safe for both groundwater, human populations, and the environment as a whole [Para 5, Lines 5 & 6]. That means individual states are responsible for the legislation on whether or not to allow fracking [Para 12], and permits are routinely applied for this supposed environmentally friendly technique, even as close to such large urban areas as New York City itself! [Para 2]

So then, if the EPA considers fracking as relatively harmless, and states across the U.S. allow thousands of wells each year to be fracked, what’s the big deal you might be asking?

The big deal here is that, just like the secret ingredients involved in making Coca Cola, the ingredients used for fracking wells does not have to be disclosed [Para 6, Lines 1-5]. That gives companies a free pass to be able to use any chemical or combination thereof as a fracking agent, with EPA approval no less. This stew of chemicals gets pumped below ground and aids in the extraction of natural gas, but at what cost? Although EPA approved and permitted by states as a safe way to obtain said natural gas, it’s the other side of the story that needs to be known.

Chemicals nearly killed an emergency room nurse who was treating a mining employee that was caught in a fracking fluid spill [Para 1 & 2]. Residents of Pittsburgh, whose wells had been fracked for the past year, were told to drink bottled water because high levels of contaminates, thought to come from fracking, have been located in their drinking water [Para 6]. Extreme water pressure has been reported in wells and other water sources from gas fracking, blowing water out of toilet tanks and leaving foul odors and an oily residue behind [Para 5-8].

In fact, scientific analysis of fracking fluids puts the finger on 278 toxic chemicals involved, with a staggering 93% of these which cause known health effects [Para 7]. And remember, all this has been certified safe by the EPA. Unfortunately, there is not a whole lot that can be done about this procedure. Since the federal government has signed off on this technique, and state governments undoubtedly get huge permit fees, there won’t be an end to gas fracking anytime soon.

However, there is a light at the end of this tunnel. Environmental protests were so effective in New York City, that the aforementioned permits to allow gas fracking in that area have been put on hold until next year. The Governor himself has directed updated legislation, to take into account modern drilling technology and waste disposal of the millions of gallons of water used in the fracking process. This new legislation will be determined by public hearings and draft regulations, and is considered a victory so far for New Yorkers and the surrounding environment [Para 7 & 8].

It is a small victory to be sure, but a victory nonetheless. And although gas fracking around the U.S. will certainly continue, let it be known that according to the companies that use it and the EPA which certifies it, health and safety need not apply.

[image credit: Gadjo Dilo]