A new poll finds that 65 percent of Americans believe there should be greater regulation of hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, a natural gas drilling technique that has raised environmental and public health concerns:
More than three times as many Americans say there should be more regulation of fracturing, known as fracking, than less, according to a Bloomberg News National Poll conducted March 8-11. The findings coincide with recent surveys in Ohio and New York where people who believe fracking will cause environmental damage outnumber those who say the process is safe.
We’re not surprised to see such an overwhelming majority of Americans in favor of more regulation of fracking.
Here in California, policymakers and enviromental activists are preparing to revive efforts to shine a spotlight on the practice through more disclosure of the chemicals used in fracking. They’re bringing back a bill (previously AB 591, authored by Assemblymember Bob Wieckowski) which will require disclosure about what chemicals are being used in hydraulic fracturing. Despite tireless work by environmental advocates including CLCV, the bill stalled last year after objections by Halliburton. Disclosure advocates also introduced legislation that would require oil companies to notify property owners before fracking near their land.
So what makes fracking controversial? In many states where fracking is utilized, operators inject millions of gallons of water (mixed with mysterious chemicals) and sand to break apart rock and release natural gas. The movie “Gasland” by Joel Fox brought the dangers of fracking home by depicting people lighting their contaminated tap water on fire. But is the process the same in California, and is enough fracking going on in the Golden State to warrant the concern?
State regulators say existing environmental laws protect the state’s drinking water but acknowledge they have little information about the scale or practice of fracking in California, the fourth-largest oil producing state in the nation. That has created mounting anxiety in communities from Culver City to Monterey, where residents are slowly discovering the practice has gone on for years, sometimes in densely populated areas.
Because of the Golden State’s unique geology, the fossil fuel industry is excited about the potential of fracking in California to tap the largest oil shale formation in the continental United States.
According to Earth Justice:
Fracking in California has yet to begin in earnest, but that could soon change. In Monterey County, officials have given a green light to Denver-based oil company Venoco to drill exploratory wells in the Hames Valley using fracking technology. The area has long been home to plenty of oil drilling and a new boom could be on its way, thanks to fracking. Oil and gas companies are also eyeing the large tracts of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land with mineral rights over the Monterey Shale formation.
It’s very likely there will be more fracking in California the not-so-distant future, making more disclosure of the chemicals used in the process — and what it could be doing to our drinking water — even more urgent. Stay tuned.
