The Pros And Cons Of Fracking

Did you know that at one point, the United States had a fear that they would run out of natural gas? Roughly a decade ago, industry analysts and government officials became worried that the United States would run out of natural gas, a source of energy in the states. A solution to this predicted problem would become hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking. Developed more than sixty years ago by George P. Mitchell, fracking is the process of pumping millions of gallons of chemically treated water, sand, and the chemicals formaldehyde, acetic acids, and boric acid, which have been identified, are pumped into deep shale formations at pressures of nine thousand pounds per square inch or more (Role 272). The pumped fluids cracks the shale …show more content…
The oil and gas industries who carry out the extraction process have a source of income and the United States as a whole benefit by receiving natural gas, which we can turn around and use to heat our house, power our houses, and power our stoves so we are can cook food.
With every good thing, there is always a negative that contradicts it. In the case of fracking, there have been several problems identified with fracking, and there are laws, regulations, and government programs that directly impact those problems. One example is the Clean Air Act, set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which reviews certain regulations every eight years and allows them to revise if necessary. The Clean Air Act therefore, can make adjustments to the types of chemicals that are being used and declare the use of alternative steps in the drilling process (Future …show more content…
One way is our water supply decreases with every location we frack. Of the seven millions gallons of water pumped in the site, over thirty percent will be trapped deep within the shale. Water contamination is another problem faced with our water. Things like problems with the steps in the process and accidental spills or leaks of chemicals can result in water contamination (Role 275). Air pollution is another problem faced with fracking. There are more than one contribution to the cause of air pollution in relation to fracking. One cause is methane gas. Methane gas is released at well heads during the drilling process. Another cause is the lack of control when burning natural gas (flaring). The third known cause is the presence of volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) in the produced water that can evaporate from storage in open pits. Along with the burning of diesel fuel to transport the wastewater and materials and the operate the machines to extract the gas (Role 277). People living near the fracking sites and the workers of these sites are affected by the pollution radiating from these fracking sites. People are becoming ill due to the pollution in the air and water. The workers of these sites have a job, but this particular job has been proved to be dangerous and has cost many their