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November12,2015

HOTONTHEBLOG

Featuringfreshtakesandrealtimeanalysisfrom
HuffPost'ssignaturelineupofcontributors

FrancesBeinecke

ChristineLagarde

GeoffreyR.Stone

NoraDunn

Rev.AlSharpton

Becomeafan

FormerPresident,NRDC

TheFrackingBoom:DoWeWanttoLeaveOurChildren
anIndustrializedLandscape?
Posted:07/29/20131:49pmEDT

Updated:09/28/20135:12amEDT

Last year I traveled to Western Pennsylvania to talk with people living next door to fracking
operations.Onemanshowedmethehomehebuiltforhiswifeandthreesonsonaquietcountry
road.Theylovedtheirrurallifestyleuntilrepresentativesfromanenergycompanyshowedupand
saidtheyhadtherighttodrillfornaturalgasbeneaththeproperty.Soonasteadystreamoftrucks
arrived with fracking fluids, giant generators, and other heavy equipment, and workers built a
largedrillpadnexttothehouse.Totopitoff,thecompanystationedasecurityguardrightinthe
middleofthefamily'syard.
Many people I met on my trip said they felt displaced on their own property once energy
companiesmovein.Theyaren'talone.
America is in the midst of dramatic spike in oil and gas development. Aided by new fracking
techniques,companiesaredrillingrecordbreakingamountsofland,includinginourbackyardsandwildplaces.Oncedrillpadsarebuilt,
theseplacesbecomevulnerabletopollution,toxicspills,andpermanentscarring.
Americahasachoicetomake.Wecanstandbyandwatchenergycompaniesindustrializeourbelovedlandscapes.Orwecancreatesmart
safeguardsthatholdcompaniesaccountableforpollutionandputsensitiveplacesofflimits.Butwehavetodecidequickly,beforeoiland
gascompaniesmakethechoiceforus.
Thecurrentscaleofindustrializationisastonishing:Asoftheendof2011,atleast141millionacresofAmericanlandwereunderleaseby70
ofthelargestoilandgascompanies.That'sanareathesizeofCaliforniaandFloridacombinedandmorethan6percentofthecountry.
In Pennsylvania alone, companies have permits for more than 12,000 unconventional wells. Each well requires a web of infrastructure,
makingtheindustrialbuildupevenlarger.The949naturalgasdrillingsitesinPennsylvania'sWashingtonCounty,forinstance,resultedin
morethan172milesofnewroadsand134milesofnewpipelines,accordingtotheUSGeologicalSurvey.

Muchofthisdevelopmentishappeningatbreakneckspeed.In2007,theBakkenReserveinNorthDakotaincluded457wellsandproduced
7millionbarrelsofoil.By2012,oilandgascompaniesweredrillingbetween2,000and3,000newwellsayear.thestatehad3,354wells
generating127millionbarrelsofoil.TheNorthDakotaOilandGasCommissionspredictthat35,000to40,000newwellswillbedrilledand
fracturedintheregionoverthenexttwodecades.Alreadytheoilpatchissoheavilydevelopedyoucannowseeitslightsanditsnaturalgas
flaresfromouterspace.
But even as the amount of drilling accelerates, government safeguards have not kept pace. Companies have exempted themselves from
bedrock environmental laws, and states have responded with a patchwork of weak standards and limited enforcement. Our communities
andourhealthpayasteepprice.
Just this week, the Los Angeles Times revealed that staff at the Environmental Protection Agency believed that methane released during
drilling"andperhapsduringthefrackingprocess"mayhaveresultedin"significant"damagetothequalityofadrinkingwatersourcefor19
familiesinDimock,Pennsylvania.Yettheagencyneversharedthatpossibilitywithresidentsnormadethatinterpretationpublic.
The Obama Administration, meanwhile, has failed to match its socalled All of the Above energy strategy with a plan for conserving
America's natural heritage. Between 2008 and 2012, 6 million acres were leased for energy development but the administration only
protected186,077acres.PresidentGeorgeWBushpreservednearly750,000acres,andPresidentClintonpreservedmorethan9million.As
FormerSecretaryofInteriorBruceBabbittsaidearlierthisyear,"Americansexpecttheirpubliclandstosupplymoreenergyfortoday,but
theyalsoexpectmoreparks,wildernessandopenspacefortomorrow.Andthatbalance,betweendevelopmentandlandconservation,isnot
beingmaintained."
Americacandobetterthanthis.Andwemust.ThatiswhyNRDCopposesexpandedfrackinguntileffectivestandardsareputinplace
includingsafeguardsthatholdpollutersaccountableandputthemostsensitivelandsofflimitstodrilling.Rightnowwearecallingonthe
BureauofLandManagementtostrengthenthewoefullyinadequatestandardsitproposedforfrackingonmillionsofacresofnationalforest,
wildliferefuges,andotherpubliclands.ClickheretotelltheBLMtoprotectourwildplacesfromthehazardsoffracking.

Ifwedon'tact,oilandgascompaniescouldalterourlandscapesinwayswecan'trepair.Theycouldpermanentlydespoilbelovedwildlands
like the stunning redrock canyons in Utah's Book Cliffs. And they could bring toxic air and water pollution into our backyards and
neighborhoods.Nowisthetimetodecidewhatkindoflandscapewewanttoleaveourchildren.
MORE: Energy Bakken Wildlands NorthDakota OilIndustry Pennsylvania FrackingWater Fracking EPA Blm Fracking NaturalGas Fracking

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