Be The Change. Public interest was so great that event organizers from Frackbusters shared the video online. This is part three of four parts. Video is courtesy of GrowthBusters.org.
“One horizontal well takes 5 million gallons for water… That’s enough water for the domestic needs for 150 people for one year.”
For information about “other events and happenings related to this issue” visit Frackbusters on Facebook.
Open Letter To A Notorious Gas Propagandist
Dear Mr. Shepstone:
I’m a fractivist and you don’t know me at all.
You are correct in only one of the seven sweeping generalizations you listed in your recent, hugely offensive blog post, Why Shale Gas Fractivists Are Doomed to Lose, NaturalGasNow, July 28, 2013. I’m not sure if you’re aware, but it’s actually not cool to catalog your dislike for people who don’t share your opinions, then list your misapprehensions like sociological observations. Please allow me to introduce myself…
1) “The typical anti doesn’t have to earn a living off the land he or she insists on protecting.” (more…)
The formerly vile and offensive Texas gasfield worker Facebook page, FracPride, received a Public Relations overhaul in recent weeks. Now it’s just offensive.
You’ve got to hand it to the young men and women who work on shale gas rigs. They’re tough and they know how to innovate. Ever since Rachel Maddow displayed the image of a truck javelined by steel rigging on a frack pad in Hemp-Hill County, Texas – a photo that originated on this now infamous page – those guys have really tried to improve the image they project. Gone are photos of mangled equipment and crude pranks. Now, it’s all sunsets, shiny trucks and sweet, little faces, with only a whiff of its former misogyny. (more…)
Trump’s Pick for Energy Secretary Should Just Say No
Former Texas Governor Rick Perry didn’t simply fail to recall the name of the Department of Energy in a past presidential debate, he failed Science.
According to his Texas A&M University transcripts, as reported by Joe DePaolo in Trump’s Energy Secretary Choice Rick Perry Flunked A Chemistry Course In College, MediaITE, December 14, 2016, “In the spring of 1970, he flunked Organic Chemistry II. He also got a C in physics, and a number of other C’s and D’s.”
Photo: Twitchy.com
Perry may be light on facts, but he’s also light on his feet. Suffice it to say, this sparkle-suited climate denier did better on Dancing with The Stars than he did in college. But how will he fare when faced with a determined, increasingly vocal scientific community? Based on Perry’s academic record, it looks like an experiment that’s bound to fail. Of course, academics are not always a true measure. Other factors in life might contribute to a person’s success or failure in performing a particular job.
In 13 Times It Sure Seemed Like Rick Perry Was High as a Kite on Drugs, Raw Story, June 15, 2015, Katie Halper chronicles all the Perry ‘Oops’ moments captured on video. Watch them and decide for yourself. (more…)
The Tax `n Frack era is upon us.
On Wednesday, February 11, 2015, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced to a classroom full of Thorndale elementary students that he plans to tax shale gas drillers to pay for things like textbooks, and the laminated weather map hanging ironically on the wall behind him.
Tying education funding to a single, cyclical, heavy industry, and one with a wildly variable price at that, is bad business for the state. Wolf should know that no tax will ever begin to cover their true tab, or replace what they are presently destroying.
While he’s at it, Wolf might ask gas drillers to print up some new textbooks, too. Otherwise, Pennsylvania school children might learn about the legacy of toxic pollution that they and our legislators are leaving behind.
Remember Talisman Terry, the friendly Fracosaurus? He was featured in a propa-ganza enriched coloring book published for Pennsylvania school children, and hilariously immortalized by Stephen Colbert in 2011.
Dear Governor Wolf,
Montgomery and Bucks are the only counties in Pennsylvania where there’s a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing. We don’t see rigs from our front porches, or continuous flares. We don’t get headaches from strange odors, or drive on crumbling roads clogged by endless truck traffic. In the Philadelphia suburbs, it’s easy to ignore the health and environmental impacts of Marcellus shale gas drilling.
When the shale gas industry arrived nearly a decade ago, it was still somewhat plausible to insist that there’s “no proof” gas drilling has ever polluted water supplies. Today, there’s plenty of proof. In 2014, The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection reported 248 cases of water supply contamination since 2007. Nationwide, there are more. (more…)
Fracking Bans Sweep Across North America, And That Was Just The Month Of December
A steady uptick in citizen activism, and a broadening awareness of hydraulic fracturing’s negative impact on everything from climate to wildlife to water, resulted in successful anti-fracking measures on ballots across North America in 2014. Then, in mid-December, the state of New York banned it. They’re not the first, Vermont holds that distinction, yet they are the first state with significant shale gas reserves to do so. People are pumped.
Naturally, the issue is emotionally charged. Shale gas development not only damages land, air and water, it destroys people’s lives. Fracking promises to be a factor in the upcoming 2016 Presidential race. Let’s make of sure of it.
Despite customarily downplaying the successes of the anti-fracking movement in the media, activists across the county have racked up a handful of amazing, longshot victories. Fracking bans were won, far and wide, and they can be found in the unlikeliest places.
New York will ban fracking — huzzah!
Despite the media’s subdued coverage, fractivists will always remember where they were when they first heard the news. I was sitting at my desk, reading emails.
Citing Health Risks, Cuomo Bans Fracking in New York State, by Thomas Kaplan, New York Times, December 17, 2014.
New York State Prohibits Fracking Delaware Riverkeeper Network Applauds New York’s Assessment and Conclusion, Press Release, The Delaware Riverkeeper Network, December 17, 2014.
Cuomo’s announcement was not only momentous, it was a surprise gift, and it was met with gratitude, tears of joy, and dancing in the streets. A spontaneous gathering thanked Cuomo, who merrily took one of the activist’s signs with him to commemorate the historic occasion. This very festive video was posted on Facebook by Sabrina Artel.
On msnbc, however, Alex Wagner characterized Cuomo decision like that of a reluctant, job-killing environmental anti-hero who was shying away from the limelight for the sake of appearing politic. I think she sells Cuomo short. I get the sense that the governor simply preferred to let science have its day.
Recently, my son wrote an essay about hidden costs. He discussed the heavy toll that certain industries, like factory farming and clothing manufacture, take on humanity and our environment when they externalize their true costs. Naturally, it got me thinking about the external costs of fracking.
One of the biggest hidden costs of Marcellus shale gas development will be a significant reduction in the number of clean, fresh drinking water supplies for future generations.
PA watersheds have endured a history of environmental degradation from a variety of sources such as logging, agricultural run-off and acid mine drainage, to name just a few. But while it’s true that many threats to our water supplies are long-standing, we can’t ignore the fact that they now face a much more serious, imminent threat.
The instances of fresh water contamination in Pennsylvania have increased dramatically since hydraulic fracturing began.
As fracking booms, waste spills rise — and so do arsenic levels in groundwater, Reporter: Reid Frazier, Writer: Adam Wernic, Living on Earth, Public Radio International, November 18, 2014.
How can we not worry? The business of shale gas is predicated on taking public risks for the purpose of private gain. All it requires, apparently, is a pricey ad campaign and couple of slick publicity stunts.
Voting Is Good For You 
Politically, Pennsylvania is in a race to the bottom.
On one hand, we have incumbent Governor Tom Corbett [R], the devious idiot who has been giving away the farm, both literally and figuratively, to Marcellus shale drilling special interests, to whom he is totally beholden.
Corbett is not only the most reviled governor in the nation, he’s also the highest paid. And that’s on top of all that gas funding. Little wonder democratic challenger Tom Wolf is trouncing “One Term Tommy” in the polls, yet it’s been decades since anyone has unseated an incumbent Republican governor in Pennsylvania, and no one is willing to call this race just yet. In the end, it could all come down to voter turnout. (more…)
“He Don’t Own The Sun”
Some of Ohio’s most talented musicians came together on Earth Day, 2014 to record this bluesy, planet-loving song, written by Jenny Morgan of “You Can’t Drink Money” fame. I love that it echoes a strong current among fractivists. Fighting fracking is not simply about stopping the boom/bust cycle of shale gas development, it’s about getting real, and actively moving toward a healthier, more sustainable fossil-free future.
Play it loud.
“He can make his billions, but he don’t own the sun.” Video share by Carolyn Harding, radioactivewastealert.org and Cinublue Productions in Columbus, Ohio. Thank you!
Good Governors Don’t Frack People
Most Pennsylvania primary elections are sleepy business. Not this one.
On May 20, 2014, an all-important primary election will be held, and it will probably determine the state’s next governor.
A whopping 55-34% of Pennsylvania voters feel that Tom Corbett does not deserve reelection, according to a recent Quinnipiac University poll. Politico Magazine has captioned Corbett “arguably the most vulnerable incumbent governor in 2014.” And, per Stephen Calabria in The Huffington Post on February 26, 2014, GOP Governor Tom Corbett Trails Each of His Democratic Challengers. It’s one of the few causes for optimism in an otherwise fracked up commonwealth. (more…)
Funny how Exxon owns half the world but they still can’t control the conversation about fracking. Shale gas producers leave themselves wide open. They persist in underestimating the intelligence of average consumers, and we can’t help but ridicule them in return. Of course, there was Chevron’s infamous pizza party after a fatal well explosion in Pennsylvania, and last week the fracking industry attempted to throw itself a 65th birthday party. Never mind that it was low volume, vertical fracking which was invented decades ago, and that high-volume horizontal hydraulic slickwater fracturing wasn’t developed until 2003. “Happy 11th!” just doesn’t have the same ring to it. Here’s another history of fracking, one this behemoth industry doesn’t particularly want told, let alone illustrated by some of the country’s wildest minds. The pen is mightier still, thank heaven, and naturally the ink is fossil free. 
(more…)
Progressive Measures Across U.S. Aim for Local Protection of Land, Air and Water Resources
Leave it to LA to make a big splash. The city of angels just became the largest U.S. city to approve a zoning ordinance against hydraulic fracturing and other well stimulation methods, and the vote was unanimous.
“City council unanimously voted Friday afternoon to send a moratorium motion to the city attorney’s office to be written as a zoning ordinance. It will then return to council for a final vote,” reports Brandon Baker in Breaking: Los Angeles Passes Fracking Moratorium, EcoWatch News, February 28, 2014.
I’ve been updating the List of Bans Worldwide page regularly. Thankfully, the list will never be finished. Bans against hydraulic fracking, shale gas processing and waste disposal are proliferating. Pennsylvania has 17 local bans and a statewide moratorium in the works, and many democratic gubernatorial candidates agree with the growing call for a permanent ban in state parks and the Delaware River Watershed. New Jersey has 33 anti-fracking actions currently gaining momentum, and New York has a staggering 218, including a strong statewide moratorium measure. When the tiny town of Marcellus, New York seeks a fracking ban and the right to local zoning, the irony pretty much abounds.
Seems wherever fracking goes, vigorous grassroots opposition springs to life. High volume hydraulic fracturing is a developing industrial technology, and as it expands into more populous regions, shale gas drillers are finding that most people object to noxious air pollution, water contamination, explosions, blow outs, spills, truck traffic, light pollution and earthquakes caused by the injection of millions of gallons of radioactive toxic waste – water that was once fresh, clean and potable. Turns out, no one – not even Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson – wants to live in an industrial sacrifice development zone.
The Big Ban Theory
A lot of very talented people are working hard to make clean air, non-industrialized un-fragmented land, and protected public water supplies a reality. Luckily, Food and Water Watch keeps a list of their efforts. It’s grown to 407 measures passed in the U.S., and counting.
I’m With Rex Tillerson, Ban Fracking #ImWithRex via David Fischer
FWW also maintains a handy interactive map.
Plus, here’s yet another budding ban from Texas:
Denton, Colorado: Group seeks ban on fracking, Peggy Heinkel-Wolfe, Denton Record-Chronicle, February 18, 2014
It’s Time To Save The Delaware River From Fracking, For Good
Food & Water Watch wants you to know that the Special Protection Waters of the Delaware River Basin are more endangered than ever.
“For the past two years, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) has upheld a moratorium on fracking in the Delaware River Basin due to massive public outcry. But right now, Carol Collier is calling for a strategy around gas drilling in the basin before she retires as executive director in March. Join us by telling President Obama and the governors of NY, NJ, DE and PA that the only strategy we support is a ban on fracking!”
Gas drillers want in. They want to produce and transport, and to frack, baby, frack. DRBC’s Collier has indicated that she intends bring a new drilling “strategy” to a vote before departing her post. It may be her idea of a legacy, though I certainly wouldn’t want all those undisclosed chemicals on my conscience.
President Obama – the man who campaigned on a pledge for a sustainable energy future yet now favors the term “energy independence” – may well deliver the deciding vote on the DRBC via the federal Army Corps of Engineers. Conscience, per se, probably won’t factor much into that decision.
As ever, the only way to protect the Delaware River Basin from the massive impacts of shale gas industrialization is with massive pubic outcry.
Permanent Protection
Start by adding your name to the the growing list of Americans who oppose expanding our dependence on fossil fuels, along with any plans to allow shale gas drilling the Delaware River Basin. Sign the Food and Water Watch letter addressed to President Obama and the governors of New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania, Protect the Delaware River Basin With a Ban on Fracking.
Let legislators know that the only long-term strategy for protecting the Delaware River Basin is a permanent ban on fracking. (more…)
Take Note: DRBC Wants To Vote On Shale Gas Drilling Regulations
It’s time once again to save the Delaware River basin from the toxic impacts of shale gas drilling.
At the next public hearing of the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), on Tuesday, December 3, 2013, a coalition of concerned advocacy groups will present a scrapbook entitled The Delaware Is Me.
The idea is to celebrate the Delaware River and commemorate another year without fracking. The point is to show the commission why this high-value, highly productive watershed ought to be spared from the ravages of industrial shale gas drilling.
The magnificent, historic Delaware River touches 15.6 million lives, and extraordinary photographs has been literally flowing in. As you may have guessed, no two images – or reasons – are alike. You can glimpse some of the photos and join the event on Facebook at The Delaware Is Me, or follow on Twitter #TheDelawareIsMe.
Better still, attend the public hearing and stand behind watershed advocates and activists in Trenton on December 3rd.
The Delaware Is Me project is co-hosted by Green Door Magazine, Catskill Mountainkeeper, Damascus Citizens for Sustainability, Delaware Riverkeeper Network and Catskill Citizens for Safe Energy.
Naturally, The GOP’s Gonna Hate It
On November 12, 2013, State Senator Daylin Leach [D-Montgomery/Delaware] introduced new Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards (AEPS) legislation, SB1171, aimed at reducing Pennsylvania’s dependance on fossil fuels. Leach was flanked by State Representative Greg Vitali [D-Delaware], who is sponsoring companion legislation in the house (HB100), and Tom Schuster, who represented about 24,000 Sierra Club members in Pennsylvania.
SB1171 is already supported by the majority of economic and environmental stakeholders in the state, including Blue-Green Alliance, Mid-Atlantic Renewable Energy Coalition and PennFuture. Makes sense, too, in this age of super storms and carbon thresholds, and given the fact that Pennsylvania is the third highest carbon producing state in the nation, right? Tell it to the Mayberry Machiavellians in Harrisburg, please.
What’s 8% Of Lame?
Under current state law, passed in 2007, Pennsylvania’s power generating utilities must acquire 8% of their energy from renewable sources. Last time I checked, natural gas was not considered a renewable in Pennsylvania, though in Texas the definition gets a little hazy.
“Time, technology and other states have passed us by,” said to Leach to Kevin Gavin and Haldan Kirsch in PA Lags In Renewables, on 90.5 WESA NPR Pittsburgh on November 12, 2013. (more…)
Phil Doe Covers The Water Issue “To The Point Where You’re Gonna Be Pretty Angry” ~ Frackbusters
This short video, Truth About Fracking, features retired U.S. Bureau of Reclamation official, Phil Doe, speaking about fresh water protection to a packed house in Colorado Springs, Colorado on January 10, 2013. It’s part three of four in a series on YouTube.
Doe is concise, yet his message is sobering and universal. He opens with a quote from British poet, W. H. Audin: “Thousands have lived without love, but nobody has lived without water.”
“You should all be concerned about where your water is going… You should protect it.” ~ Phil Doe. Uploaded by GrowthBusters.org.
Being The Change
Public interest in the event was so great that organizers shared the series online. Thanks to educational outreach events like these, environmental groups in the Rocky Mountain State have successfully raised awareness about the impacts and dangers associated with fracking.
Recently, Colorado voters in three cities approved moratoriums or bans, as was reported by Michael Wines in Colorado Cities’ Rejections of Fracking Poses Political Test for Natural Gas Industry in The New York Times on Sunday, November 7, 2013; and in Colorado Voters Tell Fracking Industry to Frack Off, and by John Upton in Grist, November 6, 2013.
For information about “events and happenings related to this issue” in Colorado, or simply to find some inspiration, visit the Frackbusters Facebook page.
Deciding The Fate Of “The Little Giant”
Outgoing Delaware River Basin Commission Director, Carol Collier, has done an impressive job withstanding extreme political pressure. I’ve been highly critical of the DRBC, yet I do believe Collier deserves our gratitude – as long as she doesn’t do anything rash.
The small interstate agency has received sharp letters of admonition from an impatient, gas-happy governor, experienced even sharper budget cuts, and suffered an uneasy tension with an increasingly feckless PA DEP. By July, 2013, the working relationship between the two agencies had deteriorated so badly that former DEP secretary, and current gubernatorial candidate, John Hanger informed readers of The Times-Tribune that “DRBC Should Have ‘No Confidence’ In Corbett’s Drilling Oversight.”
It’s true, DRBC has approved too many pipelines. In March 2013, Maya van Rossum, The Delaware Riverkeeper pressed the Commission on the need for greater oversight of planned projects. Deforestation and watershed fragmentation are growing concerns, as are leaks, ruptures and explosions.
But generally speaking, under Collier’s leadership, DRBC has stood firm in the face the mighty gas extraction lobby, and it has managed to keep them at bay, and protect our vital, shared fresh water resources all this while. For this, we owe Collier our thanks. She must be exhausted.
Carol Collier, DRBC Credit: www.nj.gov
At this point, it seems unlikely that Collier, who departs in March, 2014, will rally a vote on gas drilling regulations in the Delaware River basin, but one never knows. All you can do is check the DRBC website from time to time.
Taking the long view, however, has been a hallmark of Collier’s tenure. Meetings are long and tedious, populated by scientists and engineers, and packed with data. Collier has led the agency along this plodding, empirical course for the past 15 years, so there’s little reason to suspect she’s planning to suddenly go out with a bang. (more…)
Pennsylvanians Take A Local Stand To Support People Impacted By Fracking
“Imagine finding your tap water has suddenly turned milky, red, or black and sludgy. Imagine taking a shower and finding that it burns your nostrils and stings your skin. Imagine learning that your well water is laced with industrial pollutants such as benzene, toluene and formaldehyde.” –ShaleGasOutrage.wordpress.com
Over 1,000 complaints like these have been filed with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection through the end of 2012. PA DEP has determined that 161 water wells have been contaminated as a result of hydraulic fracturing, with more tests results inconclusive or disputed. And the complaints keep coming. In these impacted households, tap water is no longer safe for consumption, yet the nearest water utility line is often many miles away. People are forced to rely on bottled water to meet their daily water needs. Large blue “water buffalos” have become ubiquitous across the Marcellus Shale region. (more…)
Keep Tap Water Safe 
