What a fracking mess.
It’s a way of freeing natural gas from shale and rock, through high-pressure injection of water, sand and a cocktail of proprietary chemicals. Opponents of the practice say those chemicals, along with the actual fracturing of the earth deep underground, are spawning a host of problems — including air pollution, water pollution and perhaps even an uptick in seismic activity.
On the other hand, fracking has rejuvenated the domestic oil and gas industry. It has created thousands of jobs, even while still in its infancy. Fracking is the primary reason that the U.S. is now, for the first time since the ’80s, a net exporter of fossil fuels.
We in Northeast Ohio find ourselves on the front lines of this controversy. The Utica Shale formation is a prime target for hydraulic fracturing, and it’s directly below our feet. This can mean a dramatic reversal for our local economy, or perhaps the ultimate destruction of our precious ecology.
The rumblings around Youngstown are, some say, early warnings in the form of earthquakes, under and around the many fracking sites in operation there. Maybe they’re also signals that we have a decision to make. What is fracking worth, and can we pay the price? It’s a decision that we will forced to make soon.
The C4:
- Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, uses high-pressure liquid and sand to break up natural-gas deposits deep underground.
- Fracking, in conjunction with another extraction innovation (horizontal drilling), has revitalized the domestic gas industry. The U.S. is now a net exporter of energy for the first time in decades.
- Fracking efforts in Northeast Ohio are just getting underway. Critics argue they’ll result in unprecedented levels of pollution.
- All Americans will benefit from the results of fracking but only some will pay its price. We must somehow collectively decide if the rewards outweigh the costs.
