The Process of Fracking
Above: Just a few of the vectors for air, soil, and water pollution/contamination.
(Courtesy “Gasland”)
WHAT IS FRACKING?
Each fracked well (of which there can be many at each site) may take millions of gallons of freshwater, thousands of tons of sand/silica, and ~25,000 gallons of chemicals, many toxic, and inject them all under high pressure through groundwater resources, both known and unknown, perhaps 1 1/2 miles down and then another 1 1/2 miles horizontally, with multiple potential leakage points to water and air. The process then uses this chemical stew to explode shale deposits, creating new fissures, fractures, and contamination pathways.
Most of this toxic stew is simply left underground, with unknown longterm consequences. The millions of gallons of toxic and now potentially radioactive fluid that do flow back up and haven’t already escaped to pollute our air or water, have to be stored, hidden, dumped, or disposed of somehow and somewhere in our or someone else’s community.
The targeted chemical itself, natural gas-methane, along with all the other chemicals used, leak, spill, migrate, plume, corrupt, pollute, contaminate air, water, soil, people, animals, our atmosphere, our climate, media, our green energy future, and our democracy.
Because of this and more, fracking may be the most toxic and destructive industrial process taking place on the planet today.
"Making fracking safe is simply not possible”
- Lou Allstadt, former Mobil Oil Executive VP
Below: Texas - aerial view (Courtesy Ann Youngs)
