Fracking
Fracking, the popular abbreviation for hydraulic fracturing, is a technique which injects highly-pressurized fluid into a well to split the rock and allow access to natural gas trapped within.
Energy companies, driven in no small part by dwindling reserves of easy-to-access fossil fuels, are increasingly turning to so-called unconventional sources of fossil fuels. Shale gas is one of these; and hydraulic fracturing promises to open up access to what is claimed to be vast to sources of natural gas, and profits. National governments too, driven by a desire for greater energy independence, want access to these reserves of natural gas.
But big questions remain about the environmental safety of fracking: Will fracking cause more earthquakes? Will the chemicals used contaminate drinking water? What will be the impact on small farms? Does natural gas obtained by fracking have similar greenhouse gas emissions to other natural gas?
Energy companies downplay all of these concerns. Politicians focus on energy independence. Environmentalists urge caution. Whatever side you're on, fracking is likely to remain an issue in the forefront of energy policy for some time.
Featured Stories in Fracking
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Increased Use of Natural Gas Will Make Climate Change Worse, Not Better, New Study Predicts
“The large GHG footprint of shale gas undercuts the logic of its use as a bridging fuel over coming decades, if the goal is to reduce global warming.”
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4.0 Earthquake Caused by Fracking in Ohio Was Felt in Toronto
After a series of 11 earthquakes in nine months, a fracking operation near Youngstown has been suspended.
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Farmer Calls on Reddit to Help Him Protect 30,000 Acres of His Homeland from Fracking
A farmer turns to the popular social media site to throw light on plans to lease 30,000 acres of land to fracking companies.
Tag: Fracking
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There's So Much Fracking in Pennsylvania That Indie Bands and World-Famous Hitchhiking Directors Can't Find Hotels
So this is a pretty surreal story.
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Vermont Bans Fracking: We Can Live Without Oil & Natural Gas, But Cannot Without Clean Water
In signing the ban into law, Vermont's governor reminds us that there was civilization before fossil fuels, but there was no life at all before water.
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Thanks to Fracking, PR Industry is Booming
The public relations effort to sell America on fracking is a major job creator, the Onion reports.
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New Federal Fracking Rules Would Only Apply to 11% of Nation's Natural Gas Supply
Only Bureau of Land Management lands are covered by the draft rules, ProPublica explains -- not private land, not state-owned land, where the vast majority of fracking is planned.
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Germany & UK Going Opposite Directions on Fracking
Even though different conclusions about proceeding with fracking have happened in the UK and Germany, in both cases the precautionary principle has been applied to a far greater degree than it has in the US.
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Fracking Chemicals Could Hit Drinking Water More Quickly Than Thought - As Interior Mulls Letting Companies Disclose Them After the Fact
Computer modeling of the Marcellus Shale shows that chemicals could reach the surface in as little as "a few years."
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Fracking Did Contaminate Wyoming Town's Wells, Independent Review Confirms
A quartet of green groups commissioned a review of the EPA's report on groundwater contamination in Pavillion, Wyoming, finding that the EPA got it right. Fracking is to blame.
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Two ALEC Campaigns Exposed: One Kills Renewables, One Boosts Fracking
Everyone's favorite shady "stealth business lobbyist" organization is at it again.
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Vermont Senate Votes to Ban Fracking
The House passed a three-year moratorium earlier in the year. The Senate proposes to extend the ban indefinitely.
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TreeHugger Radio #203: Penguins on the Rebound, Ford’s New Electric, and the Future of Food in a World That’s Cooking
Jacob and Brian look at the top green news from the pages of TreeHugger.
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EPA Finalizes Fracking Rules - Gives Industry 30 Months to Fully Comply
EPA says VOC emissions from new wells will be reduced 95%.
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Could Using Propane Instead of Water Clean Up Fracking?
That's an unanswered question, but it also enable frackers to get around New York state's moratorium on hydraulic fracturing.
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What Happens When Murdoch's New York Post, Fracking, and Selective Editing Combine? Crappy Journalism
Crappy Journalism of the highest order in fact. You get a cocktail perhaps even more toxic than the secret blend of chemicals used in fracking itself.
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President Obama Creates New Fracking Oversight Panel, Overlooks Fracking's Eco-Impact
I really wonder if when it comes to the environmental impact of natural gas President Obama's advisors actually keep up with the latest research.
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Think Natural Gas Leasing Makes Homeowners Money? Think Again (Video)
Water Defense's latest anti-natural gas video takes on what happens to homeowners' property values and how much money they really receive from natural gas drilling.
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Protecting Americans From Natural Gas Air Pollution
Americans are speaking out in support of EPA's coming protections from pollution caused by natural gas and oil drilling.
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Lenders Say Fracking Presents a Mortgage Risk
Landowners who sign away mineral leases may be ineligible for mortgages, presenting a real financial risk long before any drilling starts.
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350.org, Josh Fox and Friends Announce Don't Frack OH Action
There are many reasons to stop fracking in Ohio, but let me unpack two: fracking is causing earthquakes across the country and natural gas is a potential climate killer.
