Blog 4:
I was most interested in the fracking module. I have learned about fracking in the past, but never knew how much water it uses per frack, as well as how many opportunities for error there are (such as leaks of oil and gas as well as damage or contamination of aquifers). I was interested in seeing that fracking is taking place in Monterey - an area that I love. I did some further research on this and found that the Trump administration is attempting to expand the amount of acres used for fracking in California - including Monterey. An added concern of this is that fracking sites using holding areas for waste water which can potentially spill over, which is alarming given the incredible biodiversity (the majority of the reason that I love Monterey) that could be affected by fracking waste. In the article that I found regarding expanding fracking land in California, the governor apparently gets a say in if fracking access will be expanded, and it will be interesting to see how issues like this play out in California and across the rest of the United States.

Comments

  1. Janna LinSeptember 15, 2019 at 2:05 PM

    Hi Kathleen,
    Both proponents and opponents of fracking bring their own sets of arguments and merits to the discussion. However, the truth remains that the fracking industry is very poorly regulated if at all regulated. This is because there are loopholes that allow the industry to bypass safety measures such as surveillance of groundwater supplies which may become contaminated due to fracking. Even proponents of fracking should be concerned by the lack of government oversight and the degree of cosiness between fracking industry and a great number of legislators. At this stage, both the EPA and the fracking industry have touted studies and reports which confirm the lack of evidence for groundwater contamination due to fracking. But this only pertains to the present time, and it does not address any process of possible contamination that is already taking place yet not reaching detectable levels. I think the EPA, which is highly political depending on what party is in power, should be free from the interference of fracking industry or related interests. That would be a good start to a salient public policy.

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