Discuss: Shale Game

Very thought provoking article.  I couldn’t help but notice the many parallels to the Deep Horizons project in the Gulf, not the least of which is Halliburton involvement.  I very much hope that rural New Yorkers will not allow this (hydro) fracking nightmare to be literally rammed down their throats. Sounds like a disaster in the making for their pristine aquafers and surrounding resources

My family came from Finland around 1890 in the Ithaca area.I follow developments in the local paper.I would like to know how much wind/solar could be used as local sources of energy.They do seem to understand that fraking and destroying the pristine water supply to the huge population of NYCity would be a bad idea! Great writing about this..

I’m writing from rural north eastern pennsylvania, an old coal area with a lot of support for natural gas drilling.  I just wanted to say thank you for the article and I hope to see more articles and continued discussion on the topic.  Fighting against fracking is a steep up hill battle.

Readers might also wish to look at Ted Williams’ article in Audubon Magazine’s Jan/Feb 2010 issue. Eastern Canada is receiving lots of attention from gas companies, to what end remains to be seen. The above article highlights specific threats as well as the serious, but more general one of ‘energy sprawl.’ This development is something to monitor and regulators need to apply lots of precautionary principles before opening up vast tracts of land to this use. The rush to profit in Pennsylvania is scary and sure to reap unwanted consequences in the long run.

From the catastrophic oil gush in the Gulf, to the devastation of Canada’s boreal forests, fresh water and greenhouse gas limits for tar sand extraction, to the plundering of indigenous homelands and wildlife habitat in South America, and the removal of mountaintops in Appalacia to get at coal seams—to name but a few of the environmental insults inflicted on the biosphere to support our profligate energy consumption—we’ve become like that trembling nicotine addict ransaking the house in search of a smokeable butt, the crack addict robbing his own parents or the neighbor kids to fund his next fix. As rediculous as those obvious addicts, but far more damaging to our progeny, ourselves and other species. Truly, as Aldo Leopold phrased it, “we are remodeling the Alhambra with a steam shovel.” Only far, far worse.
Good for those resisting this newest assault on Mother Earth. May they find all the support they deserve and help restore sanity to this nation’s energy policy and mindfulness to every America’s consumption habits.

This is a critical issue that touches me close to home—I too live in the Marcellus Shale area of the Finger Lakes. Your article was very well done.
The idea that we would continue to risk the health of our planet and so many lives (fish, plants, animals, humans…)for a nonrenewable energy source that contributes to global warming is unbelievable. When will we move on to clean power? I for one, will be fighting for the earth, and saving a species known as Man. I too, will be writing and reporting on this in the coming months.

I am an environmental consultant, hiker, camper, and generally love the outdoors. I of course am concerned with the potential impact of gas exploitation on large areas of our country, includeing my home state, Pennsylvania. I thought your article was good and presented most of the facts as I know them clearly. However, I am not aware of an “exemption” from the Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, and Superfund for fracking activities. I seriously doubt that this is an accurate statement. Can the author provide a reference for this statement?

I am not the author but suggest you check out numerous on-line sources and publications including No Fracking Way: Ban Hydrofracking in NY by John Zeiger February 8, 2010 at onearth.org that states:

“Even though there are many good environmental laws on the books, the gas companies have managed to wriggle out of most of them like worms.  Gas and oil companies are exempt from the Clean Water Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, and the Superfund Law.”
I don’t think the info is wrong, but could all this be hearsay?