By Theodora Filis Actor Mark Ruffalo, inadvertently, increased the public's awareness of hydraulic fracturing when Pennsylvania's Office of Homeland Security placed him on a terror watch list while he was promoting “Gasland” a documentary by Josh Fox, on the purported dangers of hydraulic fracturing or “fracking”. Fracking is currently used in 90 percent of the nation’s natural gas and oil wells. The practice makes drilling possible in areas that 10 to 20 years ago would not have been profitable. Fracking involves injecting water, sand, and a cocktail of chemicals at high pressure into rock formations thousands of feet below the surface. This opens existing fractures in the rock and allows gas to rise through the wells. Many of the chemicals used in shale gas drilling, such as benzene, are hazardous. Long-term exposure to such chemicals can have serious health consequences. Because the federal Energy Policy Act of 2005 exempted hydraulic fracturing from regulation under
It is imperative we all pay attention to the impact of our collective and personal actions on the environment. During the next decade, our global community will be unable to deal effectively with the formidable environmental challenges posed by decades of environmental mismanagement. There are many environmental issues I write about in this blog, some will scare you, and it is my hope, these articles will give you a reason to question and search for answers.