Protecting our back yards
 (The following is the latest in an ongoing series of letters written by Animas High School students as part of their “Morality and Politics of Justice” class.)
To the editor,
Coal and oil are the United States’ most prominent energy sources. The chance to replace this dirty supply with a cleaner alternative is too good to pass up as long as we do it right.

To reach the wealth of gas trapped in the ground, natural gas companies use a process known as fracking.  Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, uses millions of gallons of water, sand and 596 chemicals used at a an extremely high pressure. Fracking also releases methane, a potent greenhouse gas. During this process, chemicals can leak into the water supply.

Conversely, natural gas presents the opportunity to lower the United States’ reliance on coal and foreign oil. The natural gas industry also brings jobs and economic stability to our country. Although fracking should not be stopped altogether, it is a dangerous unknown that needs to be regulated and slowed down. Natural gas should only be used as a transitional source of energy as we wean ourselves away from oil and coal and onto sustainable green energy.

The main concerns associated with fracking are the environmental implications. The chemicals used in fracking are not all well known; those we are familiar with are known carcinogens, and some are even radioactive. The effect that these chemicals are having on our environment and health is still unknown. As such, it is irresponsible and dangerous to continue drilling and expanding this industry. As Deborah Goldberg explained in the “Intelligence Squared Debate on Fracking” at the 4 Aspen Ideas Festival this summer, the natural gas industry is cutting corners in order to cut costs by using cheap materials for the casing around the drill that is used to keep chemicals from leaking. These chemicals can leak into water supplies. Even if the contaminated water used in fracking is dealt with properly, we still have water that is no longer usable and is stored underground. If we are taking water from the natural cycle,  how long will it be before water becomes a rare resource?

It is not only the chemicals used that should be of concern, but also the fumes released during fracking, such as the abundance of methane. Though there are some regulations of this greenhouse gas, there is not nearly enough nor is it well enforced. Climate change is a serious issue, of which we are already seeing the detrimental effects. Destructive natural disasters, severe heat waves, and the melting of the ice caps are three troubling examples. We need to collect and dispose of this methane in a safe, clean way.

The contamination of water does not only cause health and environmental problems but also presents a civil rights issue. Natural gas extraction currently violates people’s unspoken right to live in a place that does not have contaminated water and polluted air. In fact,  there have been reports of a rise in breast cancer in one area where drilling is booming (Fehling). There have been reports of water so contaminated that it can be lit on fire. In the documentary “GasLand,” Debbie May tells the story of how her water turned color and started tasting funny, metallic like, and then turned brown and looked like mud. “(We) sent labs out to test it and the guy looked at it and said don’t drink it, don’t shower in it, don’t do your laundry or dishes, don’t do anything in it,” she recalled.

Katherine Hudson, also at the Intelligence Squared Debate, talked about how fracking sites are usually near impoverished towns where people do not have the luxury to move somewhere else and do not have the political power to speak up for themselves. Income should not determine the quality of water and air that you drink and breath.  The less fortunate should be helped by the government, not taken advantage of. You don’t see the president or the investors of these fracking companies building wells in their back yards. Regulation needs to be put in place to control natural gas companies and protect citizens living near fracking wells.

We need to protect everyone’s back yard not just our own self interests, cast off this “tomorrow” mentality, and start making change now.  We are a nation of equals, so let’s stop taking advantage of others.

– India Waller, Animas High School

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