WOW!!! Who knew Shale Gas/fracking was causing so much environmental damage...

[DesiPower]

WOW!!! Who knew Shale Gas/fracking was causing so much environmental damage. Its really hot right now and these companies' stocks are soaring.

Just heard an interview with Josh Fox on NPR, he made a documentary, Gasland, on how the natural gas mining from Shale Rocks using fracturing or fracking was having devastating wide spread impacts. It was a scary story. Basically the gas is getting mixed into the ground water and causing huge problems. In 2005 Bush(Cheney) exempted these industries from a lot of things including contaminating drinking water sources. Now EPA cannot do anything.

Cliff
People getting sick
Animals and birds dying from drinking the river and stream water
Water in rivers and streams starting to discolored or even bubble
You can set tap water on fire – imagine trying to put off a fire using that water!

NPR Story

Watch it on PBS

 

[sandorski]

Video stopped Playing at 15:30 for some reason. That's pretty fucked up though.

 

[child of wonder]

Anything for the almighty dollar!

 

[PricklyPete]

Dude...you're from Texas...stop exposing this stuff.

 

[gramboh]

Shale gas drilling/fracing can be done safely, it's disgusting and short sighted to ignore the environmental impact on stakeholders though (wildlife, local residents and indeed the corporations long-term).

 

[DesiPower]

Dude...you're from Texas...stop exposing this stuff.

I am an Independent and strongly dislike the Govt and energy company liaison... AND, there are more liberals in TX that you can imagine, BO won in the county where I live.

 

[werepossum]

Just goes to show that our mineral laws, which hold that mineral mining is the highest and best use of all land, need to be rewritten completely. Mining requiring widespread environmental damage needs to be constantly and expertly monitored (preferably by federales NOT receiving money, sex and blow from the mining company and/or lobby) and the money for remediation needs to be in escrow and immediately available. And practical plans for logical contingencies need to be in place, along with the resources needed to immediately implement them.

 

[Lemon law]

Shale gas drilling/fracing can be done safely, it's disgusting and short sighted to ignore the environmental impact on stakeholders though (wildlife, local residents and indeed the corporations long-term).

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Do not be a total idiot, shale gas drilling/fracing CAN'T BE DONE SAFELY.

If you had caught the same NPR article on the radio like I did, that same question did come up. And there is not a single place in the whole USA where it has been done safely.

And therefore, the testable challenge testable hypothesis for any fracing fan clubbers, is name a single place on the whole USA where it has been done safely. Just one place might due. Do I have any takers able to withstand even casual scrutiny?

 

[bfdd]

Oh no producing energy isn't safe! Someone should of told us! Oh wait... we have fucking known that forever how the fuck do you guys forget about this shit? This whole producing energy thing is fucking dangerous, every step of it, so stop being SHOCKED when something might be "unsafe."

 

[Daedalus685]

I think I'd be pissed too if my water well fucking exploded or my water caught on fire...... The safety concerns I face at the reactor are FAR removed from my own family at my own house being poisoned.

There is natural safety issues with everything. Us reasonable people don't allow it to affect the public, and GREATLY (as in to zero but for the small chance of disaster, ie Chernobyl) reduce any impact or chance of impact.

 

[bamacre]

The commerce clause trumps private property rights, what's the problem?

 

[Daedalus685]

The commerce clause trumps private property rights, what's the problem?

A lot of things?

 

[bfdd]

I think I'd be pissed too if my water well fucking exploded or my water caught on fire...... The safety concerns I face at the reactor are FAR removed from my own family at my own house being poisoned.

There is natural safety issues with everything. Us reasonable people don't allow it to affect the public, and GREATLY (as in to zero but for the small chance of disaster, ie Chernobyl) reduce any impact or chance of impact.

I'm not saying we shouldn't try to prevent it, I'm just annoyed with people being shocked when things aren't 100% perfect. They can't be this shit is dangerous every step of the way and the best you can do is minimize risks.

 

[Daedalus685]

I'm not saying we shouldn't try to prevent it, I'm just annoyed with people being shocked when things aren't 100% perfect. They can't be this shit is dangerous every step of the way and the best you can do is minimize risks.

Well yes... but the outrage is not that this is "unsafe" in the ilk that driving a car is unsafe... the company is effectively poisoning people.. It is not so much that it is unsafe as it is careless and irresponsible. One does not proceed with something if the risk to the general public cannot be made almost nil.

If tapping this gas requires destroying large amounts of our water supply then it should be avoided. The "risk" is simply too high, and more of a side effect than a risk as it seems almost certain. The outrage to this is far removed from the outrage that a nuclear plant could explode or some such. It is bad enough that it should be avoided in general.

 

[bamacre]

So what is preventing the people from filing lawsuits? Oh, government.

 

[Daedalus685]

So what is preventing the people from filing lawsuits? Oh, government.

I certainly hope nothing. Though their income level might be a limiting factor in hiring a lawyer.

 

[bamacre]

I certainly hope nothing. Though their income level might be a limiting factor in hiring a lawyer.

Class action lawsuit. Also, cities, towns, and states should be able to sue for damage to public property.

 

[Thump553]

So what is preventing the people from filing lawsuits? Oh, government.

Lawsuits are an inefficient, uncertain and very expensive of determining public policy-to say nothing of vesting excessive amounts of power in a (generally) unelected judiciary. A far better system would be reasonable and effective regulation by agencies-which are overseen by the legislature. And, believe it or not, most judges think this way also.

The problem is much as werepossum said, our present mineral regulatory system has been so bent it is not doing it's job.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Welcome to oh, 1980

 

[bamacre]

Lawsuits are an inefficient, uncertain and very expensive of determining public policy-to say nothing of vesting excessive amounts of power in a (generally) unelected judiciary. A far better system would be reasonable and effective regulation by agencies-which are overseen by the legislature. And, believe it or not, most judges think this way also.

The problem is much as werepossum said, our present mineral regulatory system has been so bent it is not doing it's job.

Well we see how effective regulations are here. :\

 

[flavio]

What would really help is if we had less regulations on this sort of thing and depend on the market to take care of everything.

 

[Daedalus685]

What would really help is if we had less regulations on this sort of thing and depend on the market to take care of everything.

I see what you did there...

This is not time for partisan hackery... This is a serious issue that should be solved immediately. I don't think that it is a unique position of either party that folks should have clean drinking water that has no chance of catching on fire or poisoning their pets/themselves.

 

[peonyu]

I grew up in S.western PA...The water in that region in the creeks and rivers looks like piss, and it would burn your skin if you were in contact with it for more than 30 minutes [not to mention possible Mercury poisioning, or lead poisoning]. Nothing lives in that water at all, and im sure Shale mining is even worse environmentally. It looks like it from the pictures.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Ha. Nice discussion you guys know nothing about. It is an environmentally safe process throughout the whole process. I work in the shit everyday. These people not only respect the environment they also are very respectful of the citizens of the towns they drill in. They have kept the economy in Texas in great shape while the rest of the country falls apart. You guys know nothing more than some Michael Moore type PBS news story. These companies have whole departments of engineers and scientists regulating themselves on top of the Railroad Commision checking to make sure things are done right.

 

[cubeless]

gonna need those 9's when the rocks start flying...

as usual, the reality is somewhere in the middle, most likely... although with the current mms revelations i have a bad feeling that oily is maybe too close to the situation and slides on some of the less palatable things that go on...