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What You Need To Know About Fracking

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As noted here yesterday, officials from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources have ordered several fluid-injection wells to be shut down after a series of earthquakes hit the area near Youngstown over the past year. The suspicion is that the injections of wastewater from the hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) process is linked to the increased seismic activity. The latest quake occurred on New Year’s Eve. Its epicenter was 5 miles northwest of Youngstown and 55 miles east-southeast of Cleveland, and at 4.0 magnitude, it was forty times stronger than the ten others that preceded it in 2011.

Although I’ve yet to see conclusive proof from an authoritative source (at least from one that has no side-agenda), the evidence that fracking poses serious risks to the environment and to human health is mounting. It seems prudent that we carefully consider this evidence before allowing new projects to commence, and that we closely monitor current fracking operations for signs of trouble.

What follows is a collection of news stories and resources that I hope you’ll find useful in better understanding the issue. I’ve tried to assemble information that, taken together, represents an honest picture of what we know at this point. There are obviously many questions yet to be answered.

I would also welcome your comments and any suggestions for further reading on the matter.

What is fracking?

In short, fracking is a process that uses fluid injections to create cracks in layers of rock deep underground in order to make it possible to extract fossil fuels, or to increase extraction rates. After the fluids create the fractures, sand or some other particulate is injected as well in order to keep the fractures from closing back up once the injection is stopped. Here’s how Schlumberger Limited, a leading oilfield services provider, describes hydraulic fracturing. “A stimulation treatment routinely performed on oil and gas wells in low-permeability reservoirs. Specially engineered fluids are pumped at high pressure and rate into the reservoir interval to be treated, causing a vertical fracture to open. The wings of the fracture extend away from the wellbore in opposing directions according to the natural stresses within the formation. Proppant, such as grains of sand of a particular size, is mixed with the treatment fluid to keep the fracture open when the treatment is complete. Hydraulic fracturing creates high-conductivity communication with a large area of formation and bypasses any damage that may exist in the near-wellbore area.”

Why is it controversial?

There is evidence to suggest that the process can release hazardous chemicals that eventually find their way into waterways and even into drinking water supplies. There are also the aforementioned concerns about seismic instability that can be caused by the fracking process itself as well as the process of disposing of waste fluids. Mining of sand used in the process may also cause environmental degradation. Of course, there is also the overall concern about climate change caused by continued burning of fossil fuels.

Here’s an excellent article from the BBC that presents a clear explanation of the process and an extremely balanced view of the issues and concerns involved, both economic and environmental.

Additional Recent Reports, Resources and Related Links of Interest

These are simply things that have caught my eye apropos to the subject at hand. I’ll continue to post relevant material on this Weblog as I find it.

Expert: Wastewater well in Ohio triggered quakes. [CLEVELAND (AP)] – A northeast Ohio well used to dispose of wastewater from oil and gas drilling almost certainly caused a series of 11 minor quakes in the Youngstown area since last spring, a seismologist investigating the quakes said Monday.

EPA: Fracking may cause groundwater pollution. [CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP)] – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced in December that fracking may be to blame for causing groundwater pollution.

Oklahoma quakes may have been induced by injection. [Oklahoma Geological Survey] – “Clear cases of anthropogenically-triggered seismicity from fluid injection are well documented with correlations between the number of earthquakes in an area and injection, specifically injection pressures, with earthquakes occurring very close to the well.” Still, the study concludes (as have other studies that preceded it) that at present it is “impossible to predict the effects of injection with absolute certainty.”

U.K. firm accepts report findings. [Oil and Gas Investments Bulletin] – A British-based shale exporter, Cuadrilla Resources, stated on November 2 that hydraulic fracturing was, indeed, the impetus for small earthquakes that occurred in Blackpool in northwest England earlier in 2011. Their CEO said “We unequivocally accept the findings of this independent report.”

Scientific study links flammable drinking water to fracking. [ProPublica] – A peer-reviewed study conducted by scientists at Duke University and published last May in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that levels of flammable methane gas in drinking water wells increased to dangerous levels when those water supplies were close to shale gas wells.

Sierra Club calls on Board to protect Starved Rock. [Illinois Chapter Sierra Club] – On December 15, the LaSalle County Zoning Board voted unanimously to recommend giving Mississippi Sand, LLC a special use permit to mine directly adjacent to Starved Rock State Park. The proposed project will mine for frac sand. The Sierra club believes that the location of this proposed mine threatens Starved Rock State Park and the rare brackish wetlands in LaSalle County.

Greetings From Gasland. [Gasland the Movie] – Josh Fox obviously has an agenda that he’s promoting with this film. Some may believe that it’s an extreme agenda. At this point, I do not. Caveat lector. Caveat spectator.

Improving the Safety and Environmental Performance of Hydraulic Fracturing. [U.S. Department of Energy] – Read the recommendations from the Natural Gas Subcommittee of the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board. Again, caveat lector.

Manning Case: No Match of Cables

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Forensic Examiner Found No Match of Cables on Manning’s Laptop to WikiLeaks’. [Threat Level | Wired.com] – FT. MEADE, Maryland – A day after a government forensic expert testified that he’d found thousands of diplomatic cables on the Army computer of suspected WikiLeaks source Bradley Manning, he was forced to admit under cross-examination that none of the cables he compared to the ones WikiLeaks released matched.

Campaign 2012 Predictions

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 I thought I’d get this on the record one more time. Since early October, I’ve been predicting that Ron Paul will win the Iowa caucuses. He has a large and fanatical organization on the ground in the Hawkeye State, and the unique nature of the primary process there makes that an advantage. It appears that he’s now leading in the latest polls there, after showing steady gains in recent weeks.

Ron Paul back on top in Iowa, new poll says. [CSMonitor.com] – Rep. Ron Paul of Texas is now leading the pack in Iowa as Newt Gingrich’s support fades.

I have also been predicting that the GOP will eventually nominate a Romney/Gingrich ticket, an idea that seemed laughable to many at the time I first mentioned it.

As to the general election, I believe that it will be a very close contest, with a large chunk of the voting public lending their support to a third-party candidate (and perhaps a fourth). Ultimately, I do believe that Obama will prevail.

If you have thoughts or predictions, I’d love to hear them. Feel free to leave a comment.

NDAA Indefinite Detention Overview

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Here’s a link to some fairly thorough reporting and explanation from The Christian Science Monitor concerning the National Defense Authorization Act anti-terrorist provisions. Highly recommended…

Does defense bill’s anti-terror provision deprive Americans of key rights? [CSMonitor.com] – The US Senate on Thursday approved a controversial measure that affirms broad authority for the nation’s military to indefinitely detain suspected Al Qaeda members and associates captured in the United States.

 

White House Abandons NDAA Veto

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I’ve said in the past that I felt that provisions of this National Defense Authorization Act would mark the end of The Republic. Whether or not that is the case, if the President signs it into law it will mark the end of my support for his candidacy in 2012.

White House says no veto of defense bill. [WASHINGTON (AP)] – The White House on Wednesday abandoned its threat that President Barack Obama would veto a defense bill over provisions on how to handle suspected terrorists as Congress raced to finish the legislation.

Full text of the Press Secretary’s statement is not on the White House Website yet, but you can read it on the Lawfare Blog.

Emanuel Wants Big Fines for Protesters

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Although he says that both freedom of speech and law and order will prevail in the city, somehow I doubt it.

Emanuel Wants Big Fine Increases for G8 Protesters [Chicago Tribune] – Mayor Rahm Emanuel wants to raise fines for resisting police as the city gears up for anticipated protests that will come with the G8 and NATO summits to be held in Chicago next May.

OWS and the Unions

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Yesterday’s direct action at the West Coast ports, though it failed to completely shut down shipping as was hoped, did cause significant disruption to business in many locations from San Diego to Anchorage. The protestors were able to cause a major marine terminal (Portland) to close. They brought things to a standstill for a time in Oakland and in Longview, Washington. They slowed business in Long Beach, in Seattle and elsewhere.

Much of the media coverage of this action has centered on how the protests were viewed by organized labor, and on the broader issue of the relationship between the Occupy Wall Street movement and the unions. Some reports even played-up rifts between the protestors and workers. Mid-morning yesterday, a story from CBS News showed up in my aggregator with this summary. “Anti-Wall Street activists plan blockades to support dockworkers’ labor struggle, but union doesn’t want their help.”

Later in the day a lot of OWS supporters were linking to this post from CleanAndSafePorts.org that’s titled An Open Letter from America’s Port Truck Drivers on Occupy the Ports. It’s signed by drivers of many years standing who were elected to speak on behalf of local committees from Long Beach, Seattle & Tacoma, Los Angeles, Oakland and New York & New Jersey. It presents a fairly nuanced description of their issues and their feelings about the OWS Action. Here’s an excerpt.

We are inspired that a non-violent democratic movement that insists on basic economic fairness is capturing the hearts and minds of so many working people. Thank you “99 Percenters” for hearing our call for justice. We are humbled and overwhelmed by recent attention. Normally we are invisible.

I would encourage you to read the entire letter to learn more about these workers’ lives and the difficulties that they face each day, as well as their (somewhat ambivalent) feelings about the direct action yesterday.

In parts of the country, there have been rather rocky relations between some organized labor groups and the OWS protestors from the very beginning. One need only read a few of the local General Assembly minutes to notice that. Some union leaders seemed suspicious (and perhaps even a little jealous) of a “Johnny come lately” grassroots populist movement shouting about issues of economic injustice around which Labor has been organizing for more than a century. By the same turn, many folks in the Occupy movement seemed suspicious of any of the big institutions of our society, labor unions included. Though there have been many instances of mutual support for causes and actions, it sometimes remains an uneasy alliance.

The sound bites and the headlines miss a lot of the underlying issues – structural, legal and ideological – that have set the stage for the interaction between OWS and the unions. Some of those issues have as much to do with the history of the Labor Movement in the United States as they do with any unique current conditions.

I would highly recommend an article from Richard Myers over on Daily Kos titled Unions, OWS, and Blocking The Ports. He observes that “the union roots of OWS are much broader and deeper than most observers realize.” He particularly notes the similarity in philosophy and tactics shared by OWS and the Industrial Workers of the World (horizontal democratic structure, emphasis on direct action, etc.).

As Richard notes, part of what may be playing out here is the tension between an increasingly radical local rank and file, and the stodgy reactionism of their national union leaders. He concludes, “There is no reason in the world to turn against OWS on the false basis that OWS doesn’t respect workers’ rights. OWS is all about workers’ rights. The really big question is: how far will national leaders of business unions go for the workers?”

It seems to me that he hits the nail directly on the head.

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Read Richard Myers’ article at Daily Kos.

Learn more about the West Coast ports direct action.

Find out about the IWW.

West Coast Port Shutdown

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Thousands of activists began to gather in the early morning hours today to protest at ports along the West Coast of the United States. Events are planned throughout the day from San Diego to Seattle.

You can follow what’s happening live on Twitter @occupytheport. You can also follow the #D12 hashtag for reports and comments from the community at large.