General Discussion

G_j

(40,367 posts) Sun Aug 31, 2014, 10:13 AM Aug 2014

Pennsylvania Finally Reveals Fracking Has Contaminated Drinking Water Hundreds Of Times

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/08/29/3477184/pennsylvania-fracking-water-contamination/

BY KATIE VALENTINE POSTED ON AUGUST 29, 2014 AT 9:28 AM UPDATED: AUGUST 29, 2014

For the first time, Pennsylvania has made public 243 cases of contamination of private drinking wells from oil and gas drilling operations.

As the AP reports, Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection posted details about the contamination cases online on Thursday. The cases occurred in 22 counties, with Susquehanna, Tioga, Lycoming, and Bradford counties having the most incidences of contamination.

In some cases, one drilling operation contaminated the water of multiple wells, with water issues resulting from methane gas contamination, wastewater spills, and wells that simply went dry or undrinkable. The move to release the contamination information comes after years of the AP and other news outlets filing lawsuits and Freedom of Information Act requests from the DEP on water issues related to oil and gas drilling and fracking.

The Pennsylvania DEP has been criticized for its poor record of providing information on fracking-related contamination to state residents. In April, a Pennsylvania Superior Court case claimed that due to the way DEP operates and its lack of public record, it’s impossible for citizens to know about cases where private wells, groundwater and springs are contaminated by drilling and fracking.

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17 replies

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Highlight:

Pennsylvania Finally Reveals Fracking Has Contaminated Drinking Water Hundreds Of Times (Original Post) G_j Aug 2014 OP

Thank Cheney! Octafish Aug 2014 #1

This should be headline news in Binghamton. rickford66 Aug 2014 #2

To say nothing of prosecutions. malthaussen Aug 2014 #3

Yeah! They will be fined out of existence! Enthusiast Aug 2014 #6

BP gets to dump unknown quantities of mercury into Lake Michigan each year. Octafish Aug 2014 #16

Well, all those "private well" folks should be on municipal water anyway. Trillo Aug 2014 #4

Book rec: "The Real Cost of Fracking" Cal Carpenter Aug 2014 #5

KNR DirkGently Aug 2014 #7

Kicked and recommended! If this isn't news worthy, what is? Enthusiast Aug 2014 #8

yes G_j Aug 2014 #10

Until Americans Are Willing To Abate Their Thirst For Oil And Gas - Nothing Will Change cantbeserious Aug 2014 #9

Why is there no uproar over this? Ruby the Liberal Aug 2014 #11

one would think G_j Aug 2014 #14

"We are prepared to announce we can confirm what everyone knew already." EEO Aug 2014 #12

For real ! lunasun Aug 2014 #13

I only have time for a kick atm.... This is important tho... Cal Carpenter Aug 2014 #15

thanks G_j Sep 2014 #17

Octafish

(55,745 posts)

1. Thank Cheney!

Reply to G_j (Original post)

Sun Aug 31, 2014, 10:15 AM

Aug 2014

He Fracked America.

"Scientific advisory panels at the Department of Energy and the EPA have enumerated ways the industry could improve and have called for modest steps, such as establishing maximum contaminant levels allowed in water for all the chemicals used in fracking. Unfortunately, these recommendations do not address the biggest loophole of all. In 2005 Congress—at the behest of then Vice President Dick Cheney, a former CEO of gas driller Halliburton—exempted fracking from regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Congress needs to close this so-called Halliburton loophole, as a bill co-sponsored by New York State Representative Maurice Hinchey would do. The FRAC Act would also mandate public disclosure of all chemicals used in fracking across the nation."

-- Scientific American, Nov. 2011, "Safety First, Fracking Second"

rickford66

(5,524 posts)

2. This should be headline news in Binghamton.

Reply to G_j (Original post)

Sun Aug 31, 2014, 10:40 AM

Aug 2014

But they only story I've seen in the local paper was about ex-mayor Ryan shoving the local pro-fracker in a biker bar.

malthaussen

(17,202 posts)

3. To say nothing of prosecutions.

Reply to G_j (Original post)

Sun Aug 31, 2014, 11:17 AM

Aug 2014

I eagerly wait to see what horrific punishments will be inflicted on the companies responsible. I'm sure they will be of such a nature that no one will ever dare contaminate our biosphere again.

-- Mal

Enthusiast

(50,983 posts)

6. Yeah! They will be fined out of existence!

Reply to malthaussen (Reply #3)

Sun Aug 31, 2014, 11:41 AM

Aug 2014

Octafish

(55,745 posts)

16. BP gets to dump unknown quantities of mercury into Lake Michigan each year.

Reply to malthaussen (Reply #3)

Sun Aug 31, 2014, 10:54 PM

Aug 2014

From there it goes into the fish and people of the area.

BP is polluting Lake Michigan

BP, stop discharging toxic mercury into our water supply

Chicago Tribune, July 01, 2013

BP, one of the world's biggest companies, dumps nearly 20 times more toxic mercury into Lake Michigan than federal regulations permit.

This has been known for years, but BP still gets away with it. How? Ask the people of Indiana.

In 2007, a Chicago Tribune investigation documented that Indiana allowed the massive BP refinery in Whiting to increase the amount of pollutants it released into the lake water that's used by millions of people for drinking, fishing and recreation. Permitting the oil company to dump high levels of mercury, ammonia and suspended solids helped to clear the way for a big expansion of the refinery.

When the Tribune exposed the excessive polluting of Lake Michigan, environmental groups gathered 100,000 petition signatures seeking to stop the practice. The Illinois congressional delegation — which then included Sen. Barack Obama and Rep. Rahm Emanuel — went on the warpath.

BP backed down. The company agreed to abide by stricter limits on ammonia, which promotes algae blooms that kill fish, and suspended solids, bits of refinery sludge that contain heavy metals.

But Indiana environmental regulators exempted the refinery from complying with the federal mercury standard of 1.3 parts per trillion while BP worked on technology to scrub its waste of that pollutant. Indiana allows the company to discharge an average of 23.1 parts per trillion.

That exemption was supposed to expire in 2012. But Indiana extended it once and, as the Tribune's Michael Hawthorne recently reported, Indiana regulators want to give BP an indefinite pass on mercury restrictions.

This cannot stand. Indiana regulators have compromised Lake Michigan water quality to accommodate the company.

CONTINUED...

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-07-01/opinion/ct-edit-bp-20130701_1_indiana-regulators-mercury-refinery

Not to be cynical, but that's the same BP that polluted the entire Gulf of Mexico. Indiana has a tiny coastline along Lake Michigan and it's polluting more freshwater shore than California's seacoast.

Trillo

(9,154 posts)

4. Well, all those "private well" folks should be on municipal water anyway.

Reply to G_j (Original post)

Sun Aug 31, 2014, 11:20 AM

Aug 2014

Nobody should be allowed to not have a water bill every month! And if you do have a private well, you should be slowly poisoned, so the medical complex can recapture that lost income. /sarcasm

Cal Carpenter

(4,959 posts)

5. Book rec: "The Real Cost of Fracking"

Reply to G_j (Original post)

Sun Aug 31, 2014, 11:25 AM

Aug 2014

It talks about the fact that (up until now, apparently) it has been virtually impossible to collect data about the damage fracking has done to the water, soil and air in heavily fracked areas like many parts of Pennsylvania. The data has not been made public, in part because the mixture of chemicals used in the process is "proprietary" so they can't 'prove' that contamination is associated with the fracking, and also because there are no requirements to do testing *before* the fracking process begins so comparing the before/after is impossible.

So the authors of The Real Cost of Fracking collected a lot of anecdotal information that is quite clear, as a starting point for more comprehensive scientific research.

That the PA DEP is making this info available is incredibly important for proving how dangerous fracking is.

It is a good book - I have only read about half of it but it gives you a really good sense of what has been going on, and helps dispel the assumptions and knee-jerk reactions about farmers making the decision to allow fracking on their land. There is a lot of victim blaming about it and it is unwarranted.

(PS - Buy it from your local bookstore!!1! If they don't carry it they can probably special order it for you. Or Powell's if you have to do it online. PLEASE not Amazon or Barnes & Noble. ***steps off soapbox***)