No Fracking Way

A picture of fracking protesters

What’s not to love about an energy source that provides cost savings for customers, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and the potential for 2.7 million jobs?  The natural gas boom has arrived.  America is sitting on an enormous supply of natural gas, which is important as we strive to be energy-independent. If the story stopped there, it would easy to be an unapologetic proponent of natural gas.  The problem is the extraction.  Hydraulic fracturing, known as “fracking,” involves the high-pressure pumping of millions of gallons of water, sand, and chemicals deep into shale to draw out pockets of natural gas.  That might not sound so bad at first... if you don’t stop to think about it.  Yes, it’s the thinking that will get you every time, isn’t it?  When I first heard that fracking was beginning in Illinois, I wanted to do some research.  What I discovered was shocking.
The problem boils down to water and chemicals.  First, fracking uses an excessive amount of water. In 2011, the EPA reported that fracking the 35,000 wells in the U.S. uses 70 to 140 billion gallons of water each year, which is equivalent to the annual water consumption of 40 to 80 cities each with a population of 50,000. Because of climate change, water is becoming scarce. (The drought has even affected our crops. To read more about it click here for a link to a previous blog of mine).  Although what is pumped through the shale is mostly water, it also contains nasty chemicals, which could potentially get into aquifers and contaminate water supply.
      But what got us, the United States, to this point of putting our environment in danger for natural gas? Being wasteful, of course. If you are like almost every American, you keep water running while brushing your teeth; you keep the lights on when you leave a room. In short, you just assume that there is always more water or electricity, right? The United States is a country that consumes and wastes a lot of natural resources, especially fossil fuels and water. (A shocking statistic from the Environmental Protection Agency even states that leaks alone account for an average of 10,000 gallons of water wasted per household a year). This wastefulness has led the U.S. to resort to processes like hydraulic fracturing to fulfill our demand for cheap energy. So, what does this problem say about our American societal values? Why do we put our own needs before the environment's needs?