Fracking

Natural gas is the transitional fuel that is cleaner than coal and oil that has been experiencing a boom in the United States for the last few decades. Natural gas is most familiar to us in the form of heating and cooking on gas ranges. It is abundantly available and modern technology has made it much more accessible and cheaper than other energy sources. Hydraulic fracturing, known short as fracking, is the combination of technology with water and chemicals, and high pressure, that breaks through shale rocks to capture energy. The Climate One podcast titled “ Fracking Boom,”explains America’s recent obsession with fracking, surrounding its history, economic stimulus, construction, and community opposition among other issues. Presenting the talk were Russell Gold, author of The Boom: How Fracking Ignited American Energy Revolution and Changed the World, Mark Zoback, professor of Geophysics at Stanford University, and Trevor Houser, co-author of Fueling Up: The Economic Implications of America’s Oil and Gas Boom. The three guest speakers shared their expertise on how the fracking boom can power America’s economy, but can only be successful if the process in making the wells for fracking, are done along guidelines within the regulations.

Insight, IHS Global. "The economic and employment contributions of shale gas in the United States." Prepared for America’s Natural Gas Alliance by IHS Global Insight (USA), Washington, DC: America’s Natural Gas Alliance (2011).

The United States has one of the largest deposits of shale oil, so drilling for it may seem like a logical decision “…over 750 trillion cubic feet of …shale gas and 24 billion barrels of … shale oil resources…exist in…shale plays… developing these resources creates jobs and fuels our economy… the key…is through the process of hydraulic fracturing…” (Energy Tomorrow 2013). The number of jobs created by the institution of hydraulic fracturing is widely touted by proponents of hydraulic fracturing, but the number of jobs directly created may actually be smaller than claimed. In Pennsylvania, many jobs were created from hydraulic fracturing, though most are not as a direct result from the institution of hydraulic fracturing. In the third quarter of last year, 216,946 jobs were created in Pennsylvania as a result of hydraulic fracturing…but only 30,000 of those jobs are actually from fields that are closely related to hydraulic fracturing. “It (number of jobs created) covers industries whose connection to oil and gas development is tenuous …ranging from freight trucking to highway, street, and bridge construction… agency officials …admit that the figure—when used to estimate jobs supported by shale—amounts to little more than a guess” (“Foran”). Even though hydraulic fracturing is continuing to create jobs, the number is starting to decline as a result of the success of hydraulic

In today's global economy, energy is one of the most crucial and sought after commodities. Who supplies it and how much they supply determines how much influence they have over other countries as well as the global economy. This is why hydraulic fracturing is currently such an important and controversial topic in the United States. Hydraulic fracturing, more commonly known as "fracking" or hydrofracturing, is the process of using pressurized liquids to fracture rocks and release hydrocarbons such as shale gas, which burns more efficiently than coal. This booming process of energy production provides a much needed economic boost, creating jobs and providing gas energy for Americans. The efficiently burning shale gas reduces carbon

The mismanagement of the practice has the potential to create environmental damage such as water contamination, radioactive spills, and increased seismic activity that could cost thousands in dollars in damage. Furthermore, the unintended consequences of fracking can have detrimental effects on the environmental. The potential for water contamination can pose both an immediate and long term risk to environmental stability, including landscape distortion, inhabitability and ecological displacement. This contamination of drinking water can also be detrimental to the human environment, limiting the amount of safe water available for both the residential and commercial human environment. With the increase of fracking, the level of disapproval for the practice has only mounted. Concerns including overconsumption of

In recent years, the subject of hydraulic fracturing, better known as fracking has been a constant subject of interest in the news media. The pros and cons of fracking are passionately debated. However, the public should become educated on the subject of fracking prior to choosing a side of the argument. In the scholarly article, “Super Fracking,” published in 2014, by Donald L. Trucotte, Eldridge M. Moores, and John B. Rundle, a detailed description of fracking is provided, followed by their analysis of current issues surrounding the controversy. According to Trucotte, Moores, and Rundle, fracking saves the consumer money. The wellhead cost to produce natural gas in January of 2000 was two dollars and sixty cents per one thousand cubic feet. At an alarming rate, the cost at the wellhead to produce natural gas had risen to eight dollars per one thousand cubic feet by January of 2006. Comfortingly, the wellhead cost dropped to two dollars and eighty-nine cents by the end of 2012. Impressively, gas production increase and price decrease over the time period are a result of fracking. In their article, Trucotte, Moores, and Rundle describe in great detail that hydraulic fracturing, most commonly referred to as fracking is the process of drilling down into the earth to fracture the layers of rock so that a high-pressure water mixture is directed at the rock to release the oil or natural gas inside. This method of fracking has been used commercially for the last fifty years.

In “Fracking, the Environment, and Health”, an article found in the American Journal of Nursing, authors Dr. McDermott-Levy, Dr. Sattler, and Ms. Kaktins reported “Fracking operations have grown exponentially since the mid-1900s, when technologic advances and increases in price of natural gas made this technique economically viable. Fracking is currently taking place in

In 2000, shale beds where the number one source of America’s constant need for gas. Most of that production increase has come about to the growing need of hydraulic fracturing, also known as “fracking”, which is a process used to release oil or gas from underground formations that are otherwise too hard to mine with other tools. Over the past few years, advances in fracking technology have made huge reserves of natural gas in America economically recoverable. According to the Energy Information Administration, shale gas plays, or fields, in the United States, most notably the Marcellus, in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and New York, and the Barnett, in Texas, are said to contain enough natural gas to give power to the country for a hundred and ten years. With the everlasting specter of energy independence, some have argued that such efforts to recover natural gas need to be expanded. Activists concerned with fracking’s potential environmental hazards view the new process as a serious threat to our environment. There are many different opinions on wether or not fracking is a safe way to gain our gasoline, and to meet the growing demands of gasoline around the world. The process of fracking creates cracks that come from wells into oil and gas formations by pumping highly pressurized fluids, ceramic beads, sand, and a mixture of chemicals, into the gas formation. As this fluid holds the underground fissures open, oil and gas fly up the well to the surface where they are

The Marcellus Shale formation located in western Pennsylvania, New York, and Ohio is projected to supply an equivalent of 45 years of the United States current energy consumption. Worth an estimated five hundred billion, this can translate into cheaper and wider “variety of products such as plastic, agrochemicals, and pharmaceuticals.” It can also relate to an “increase [in] the supply of fertilizer, ensuring the availability of food and reducing…the conversion of forests to agricultural farms” (Sovacool 252). The fracking industry will only increase in size in future years, so much so that reclamation of shale gas is called the “eminent shale gas revolution. British Petroleum [BP], for instance, expects global shale gas

There has not been an adequate amount of research into the long-term consequences that fracking will have. As of now the quality of the air in and around fracking sites is not monitored and the impact of the health of nearby residents and workers is unknown. There needs to be legislation put in place to force the fracking companies to provide a list of chemicals being used. Due to the lack of regulation the communities around fracking sites have no way of knowing the exact composition of the chemicals that are in use. If an accident were to happen at one of the fracking sites, emergency responders would be unprepared, there are different ways to deal with different

The debate over fracking cannot simply be limited to the discussion of environmental impact and health concerns. While these subjects are critically important to our future, so is the economic stability of the United States and its energy security that has been a point of major concern for decades. Until recent years, the hydrocarbon industry has been lead by Middle Eastern OPEC nations, and by natural gas production in places like Russia. For the last three consecutive years, the United States has

Fracking is the process of drilling into the earth and injecting water, sand, and chemicals into the rock at intense pressure in order to release natural gas back into a well (“What is Fracking…” 1). In 2005, when the Environmental Protection Agency excluded fracking from the Safe Drinking Water Act, this really was the turning point for drillers (Stockton 2). While the resources of oil and gas and now more easily accessible due to recent fracking, this process has become an environmental issue that has negative effects (“What is Fracking…” 6). Water waste, increased release of methane, air pollution, and earthquakes are all examples of this (Loki 1-5).

At a time where jobs are hard to find, fracking has been a saving grace for many. In 2012 alone the fracking industry supported 2.1 million jobs. (Economy) There is also a lot of potential for growth, according to Purdue University economist, Wallace Tyner. In the article “The Liberal War On American Energy Independence”, author Arthur Herman conveys that Tyner suggested that between 2008 and 2035 that fracking will add around $473 billion dollars each year to U.S. economy. (Herman) Fracking has already had an impact on foreign oil dependency, and it is definitely for the better. The New York Times reported “In 2011, the country imported just 45% of the liquid fuels it used, down from a record high of 60 percent in 2005.”(Krauss) This is a crowning achievement for many of the big supporters of fracking. Production could eventually reach to 10 million barrels a day, making us a real competitor of Saudi Arabia. (Krauss)

Competition from other energy companies makes Shell strive for better and cheaper ways of creating energy. There is a theory which states that competition between different companies helps rather than hinders them. Since Shell has to compete for the energy market, Shell’s scientists work with other institutions such as University of Texas, to develop better methods of extracting energy that is safer and cheaper. Another benefit that has resulted from the growth of the fracking industry is the creation of 1.7 million new jobs in the Unites States. Studies from an economic forecaster, IHS Global Insight, have shown that by 2035 the number should rise to 3.5 million jobs. There is potential for fracking to become the main source of extracting natural gas. In the graph below the green section or shale section shows how many cubic feet of gas is being produced by fracking from 1990 to 2040. However scientists can only estimate that amount of shale gas being produced in the future. We do know that fracking has caused a dramatic boost in the natural gas production in this country. The Energy Information Administration states that the production on natural gas will rise around 44% through 2040 due to fracking.The higher production rate

According to former Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, “Hydraulic fracking is very much a necessary part of the future of natural gas.” Hydraulic fracking is a process in which natural gas is yielded from breaking rock formations deep below the ground’s surface. The rock formations are injected with a liquid mixture of water, sand, and several different chemical compounds. Some of these chemicals are known carcinogens if they are ingested in certain quantities. Accordingly, many people fear that if these chemicals collect in drinking water, there is an increased risk of the population developing disease. Additionally, companies are not required by law to reveal the chemicals they are using due to the fact that these are “trade secrets.” Although there are negative aspects of fracking, there are several positive benefits. The process of fracking produces natural gas, which is more environmentally friendly than fossil fuels such as coal and oil. Moreover, nearly thirty-two states have the environmental potential for fracking, which would could greatly benefit these states by increasing revenue and creating more jobs. Currently, fracking procedures are being left for each state to decide how they want to regulate them. This process should be revised due to the fact that there are several environmental and personal health risks that are involved with fracking. The Clean Water Act should be amended in order to allow the EPA to create guidelines for the fracking