Offshore drilling: a technique to get oil from underneath the seafloor, has been one of the largest and most helpful breakthroughs in technology during the last few decades. Humans have even discovered many new methods that have been developed to financially help our economy from the abundance of oil underneath the ocean floor. The search for oil is vital for the economic future of many nations. However, risks and consequences often faced in coastal ecosystems and on the mainland are powerful, and could later lead to bigger problems humans have to face; such as less food from interruptions in the food chain, higher gas prices, and not being able to enjoy the oceans and coasts, like we do today. Offshore drilling is a huge danger to coastal
Like what is said above there is a risk for oil to get into the water and there is a lot of concern in the parts of the aquifers that are just below the Sand Hills and certain areas of the aquifer the water is near on at the surface Subpoint: Wildlife— There are two primary types of impacts that occur with a spill of crude oil Physical impacts— soil, sediments, plants, and animals can become coated with oil. When animals are covered in oil they can have difficulty feeding or obtaining oxygen toxicological impacts— crude oil may be toxic when ingested… “ingestion occurs typically when an oiled animal attempts to clean its fur or feathers
“Gasland” is a documentary on natural gas and how its drilling affects people. It really lets you see what these natural gas companies are doing. The toxic fumes and chemicals are ruining people 's lives to the point where some of them are dying. “Gasland” makes you grateful for what you have and how clean it is. Think about having to get your water every day and it was 30-50 miles away.
Academic Analysis: “Natural Gas Fracking Addresses All of Our Major Problems” In his essay, “Natural Gas Fracking Addresses All of our Major Problems,” Richard Pierce argues that by using horizontal drilling and fracturing of shale formations to obtain natural gas will solve many of our nation’s issues. He cites that by accessing our abundant supply of natural gas, the economy, environment, and geopolitical conditions will improve. He backs these claims by listing examples of recently discovered natural gas basins in the United States and abroad and by showing that the current gas supply has put downward pressure on oil prices. Lower oil prices make many products more affordable and improve the global economy.
"Hydraulic fracturing, the process of extracting oil or gas by forcing fluids into the ground to fracture shale rocks, at the Eagle Ford Shale Play has produced more oil and natural gas but at the cost of environmental hazards and affect human health. The part of the process that creates the environmental hazards is the fracking fluids that are forced into the ground. For each fracking job, these fluids are comprised of 1 to 8 million gallons of water and 40,000 gallons of chemicals. Some of the 600 chemical carcinogens and toxins in the fracking fluids are lead, radium, uranium, mercury, methanol, hydrochloric acid, ethylene glycol, and formaldehyde. Once the fracking job is done, about 50 to 70 percent of fracking liquids are left in open
Fracking: The New Energy Rush “Fracking is taking place from sea to shining sea” was a quote used within the documentary that stuck out to me. Prior to this documentary, I had no previous knowledge on the subject; the video made me anxious to learn. Fracking is when a crane goes down approximately two miles underground, which leads to it turning horizontally.
Hydraulic fracking has the capabilities to change the United States economy and improve the lives of many people. Fracking produces large amounts of natural gas that can be used as fuel, but because fracking is such a new process, researchers and environmentalists do not yet fully understand the negative effects it can have on our environment over time. Fracking has been linked to the contamination of groundwater and this contamination is a danger to people who live near fracking sites. The process of hydraulic fracking requires the use of hundreds of potentially dangerous chemicals which need to be regulated to keep our environment safe and clean. Hydraulic fracking should be allowed in the United States because it provides a useful resource,
Fracking, also known as hydraulic fracturing is the way of breaking dense rocks in the ground to create a fracture network to make crude oil and natural gas flow in a wellbore to bring on the surface. The process of fracking is complex. Workers have to inject fluids like water, sand, and other chemicals into the ground. Fracking is a good way to get resources but ultimately bad for human health and the environment. There are different types of pollutants that bould be released, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), particulate matter, and methane.
Some people say fracking is harmful to the environment by damaging nature and by causing water pollution. Some claim that fracking is damaging nature and the landscape; however, there is actually a new technology that help reduce the amount of wells that have to be made. In addition, some people claim that fracking contaminates the groundwater, even though there is no scientific evidence that fracking contaminates groundwater. As a result the National Groundwater Association and the government agency which represents the states have found no evidence that fracking is ruining the drinking water. (No Evidence of Groundwater Contamination from Fracking)
Texas is the largest state in the United States, and the only one to once be its own independent state, giving it the nickname “The Lone Star State.” It is bordered with Mexico, and lies next to the Gulf of Mexico. Since Texas is next to the gulf, it is home to many ports for international trade. However, with so much trade comes the risk of pollution to the gulf, which eventually reaches the shores of many beaches in Texas. One of the worst oil spills in Texas history was the Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010.
Fracking: A Crime against Humanity As a law abiding citizen, I cannot conceive or be an advocate of fracking, without questioning its impact on Earth’s layers; and its role in the increment of frequency of earthquakes, contamination of water, and the related human health hazards. While fracking is helping the U.S. to extract shale gas, which is basically trapped between fine sedimentary rocks, the liabilities are overwhelming. In the field of fossil fuel, these rocks are well-known as stale and its exploitation is supporting American’s population, in obtaining the most needed fossil fuel. Deplorably, the risks seem unbeatable.
There have been over 1,000 documented cases of water contamination next to areas of gas drilling. This Type of pollution cause many health issues for human such as rashes, stomach or liver illness, respiratory problems and Neurological affects. In some extreme cases the pollution can cause death to some humans. Fracking has huge consequential hazards to the public health and the environment, and many have long term effects. In June 2014 the Public Health published a review of the public health impacts of exposures to chemical and radioactive pollutants, the result of shale gas extraction in the UK was based on the examination of literature and data from countries where fracking had already occurred.
The oceans economy provided more than 2.7 million jobs and contributed more than $258 billion to the GDP of the United States in 2010. The ocean economy supports employment two and a half times larger than other natural resources industries. Approximately 5.4 million jobs in 2010 were directly and indirectly supported by the ocean with their total contribution estimated at $633 billion. More than a billion jobs around the world supported by ocean economies. It’s perceptible that the ocean’s economy is really important, however but due to overfishing, it is costing many people their jobs.
In an environmental perspective, “[a] 2014 New York state health department report…finding serious concerns in areas including respiratory health, drinking water, seismic activity, soil contamination, and impact of new roads and infrastructure on local communities” (James McBride, Hydraulic Fracturing (Fracking), cfr.org). Drinking water is at risk of being affected because, as previously mentioned, the opened fractures within the shale bedrock potentially allow wastewater and other chemicals to travel into groundwater. The eruption of increasing seismic activities after a fracking event, as stated by the aforementioned article by McBride, “…is a concern because both the fracking process and the practice of injecting wastewater into deep wells
Christopher Reeve once said, “Either you stay in the shallow end of the pool or you go out in the ocean.” Having been growing up on a boat during the summer for a majority of my life, I have always been surrounded by the ocean. I’ve been exposed to an abundance of different species of marine life, along with their environments. However, the bottom of the ocean has always been a mystery to me; I have never been able to see the surface of the seafloor first hand. Up until today, only about 5% of the ocean has been explored; this percentage will drastically increase due to the Atlantic Ocean disappearing.
Drilling gives off air pollution as well as carbon discharges--this is very bad for the environment. Another con is the possibility of an environmental hazard such as an oil spill. Oil spills can cause harm to people in the area, the environment itself, and marine life (GreenGarage). Along with those problems, due to an oil spill, there is also the increased possibility of a fire, and/or explosion. This can also affect lives of the underwater wildlife.