David Glazer AP Language and Composition Johnson 2/3/16 Analyzing “A Field Philosopher’s Guide To Fracking” In his book A Field Philosopher’s Guide to Fracking, Adam Briggle documents his journey to fight fracking in the small town of Denton, Texas. Recently hired as a professor of philosophy at the University of North Texas, Briggle moves to Denton never having heard of fracking before. Fracking is a type of drilling that increases oil production and effectiveness but, as Briggle would learn, has severe consequences on the community.
Prior to watching Gasland 2 and Truthland, I am familiar with the term “fracking” but never took the time to look into it. After watching these two films, I realized how fracking is a controversial topic in the world of environmentalists. These two very different films explain how fracking is effecting the environment around us. Before explaining further into these films, we need to know what fracking really means. Fracking is “a process by which the rock is split so that natural gas can flow to the surface,” defined by Terry Engelder, a professor of geosciences at Penn State University.
What is fracking? Fracking is the process of drilling into the ground and releasing a high-pressure water mixture into rocks in order to fracture them and release the natural gases inside. The water mixture consists of water, sand and chemicals. Fracking is beneficial because it lowers the prices of oil and gas, reduces America’s dependency on foreign oil, and reduces CO2 contribution.
In addition, there are more downsides to fracking than just water pollution, and that is the pollution of our environment. The condition of our environment is horrendous when fracking is conducted. To add on to that statement, fracking has caused natural gas leakage into the air, marred landscapes, and many more hazards to our environment. Fracking has already caused pollution to the air, and fracking companies have to remove trees, then that takes away more air from our environment. Trees are vital to Earth’s supply of oxygen, and these companies are just taking the air straight out of the lungs of the people.
In the second article "Fracking Threatens Everyone" it is stated "Fracking remains a dangerous practice that poses a threat even if it is done correctly and is carefully monitored" so it seems that the author wants people to stop Fracking because it generates dangers. It is stated "sources of drinking water can be ruined and all different types of pollution can happen in a second" which poses a great threat to many places. For example, the pollution can enter streams and rivers and kill whatever is in it, and harm even more wildlife. It says "This makes fracking a gamble for communities and individuals who may be tempted by the large amounts of money being offered to those who allow their land to be used for fracking" and the author
Hydraulic fracturing, commonly known as fracking, is a very controversial method of capturing oil and natural gas. It involves shooting a solution of water, sand, and almost 600 chemicals at extreme pressure into underground wells, causing the rock formations to crack. This allows the oil and natural gas to flow more freely, allowing previously trapped resources to be harvested. Fracking is so controversial because the potential monetary gains are enormous, yet the environmental impacts are devastating. The documentary “Gasland”, directed and narrated by Josh Fox, provided first hand insight into the fracking industry.
With the increased scale of fracking in Texas, one might wonder if the oil boom is affecting our water supply. The value of water in Texas is deeply cherished considering Texas’s dry climate and long-standing droughts. One may even wonder if Texas is valuing its water as much as it is its oil. As research furthers, we can begin to weigh the positive and negative effects of oil fracking. By providing overwhelming data on oil fracking
Fracking: Should It Stop? In 2007, a home in Ohio received an unpleasant surprise when, after turning on the sink, an explosion ensued (Beaver 128). What caused this explosion?
In recent years there has been a big issue on fracking in Oklahoma. This is an issue that only continues to get worse. The oil company, , by residents has been blamed for many of these earthquakes. Within the past month, there have been more and more issues. In Edmond Oklahoma, there was a big earthquake, which provoked residents to sue the company for $28 million in damages.
In the movie Promised Land, two employees from Global Crosspower Solution, Steve and Sue, arrive in an economically struggling Pennsylvania in an attempt to persuade people living in a small farm town to sign off for drilling rights. The ethical dilemma in this movie is fracking. Fracking is the process of drilling and injecting fluid into the ground at a high pressure in order to fracture shale rocks to release the natural gas inside. Fracking is a dilemma. Not only is it highly dangerous, but this is not a safe way to drill these natural gases out without possibly contaminating the groundwater or having these chemicals leak back onto the land.
Shots fired, officer vehicles set ablaze, and groups of protesters pepper sprayed; all hell broke loose on the date of October 17, 2013 when the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) showed up to stop anti-fracking protesters in New Brunswick, Canada. Hydraulic fracturing, commonly known as fracking, has long been a controversial topic. Many argue that fracking allows us access to better and cleaner burning fossil fuels, while others argue that the process in which these gases are obtained are bad for the environment. On this specific day in New Brunswick, protesters were protesting in the belief that fracking would cause contamination to their drinking water supply. But in order to find the truth, it is important to dive a little deeper into
Thesis statement The benefits of natural gas hydraulic fracking do not justify the adverse effects it causes through continuous earthquakes, pollution of the water table, or potential health hazards to human populations. This subject is interesting to me because I work for a natural gas company. I have had many conversations with other employees regarding natural gas fracking, and most of them are biased to the views of the drilling companies which means they do not see any harm in it. There also used to be companies fracking for natural gas in Arkansas on the Fayetteville Shell. The number of small earthquakes did rise (3.0 or smaller), but there was nothing resulting in a large amount of devastation.
Despite, the human’s constant concerns about the impact of fracking on the environment, human health and other issues, it has been one of the most important innovations for the economy in Northeastern Pennsylvania over the last century. “It’s almost impossible to overestimate the importance of fracking to the natural gas industry and the nation”. The importance of fracking on the economy in Northeastern Pennsylvania is similar to everywhere else in the United States. However, ever since the discovery of this technology, Northeastern Pennsylvania in particular has transformed completely.
Researchers have “requested data from Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, and Texas, all states heavily involved in the recent surge of oil and gas drilling, about complaints related to hydraulic fracking for oil and gas” for their research on fracking (Dechert). The research collected was shocking, over 2,000 complaints in Texas alone and several cases on well water contamination within the states mentioned in Decherd’s article. People need to be alerted about how real fracking is and the damages it is doing. These complaints and cases should be a wakeup call to the world and say that we should put it to a
For the citizens, “fracking will give them jobs so they can make money and support their families” (Rogowsky). Furthermore, with the addition of fracking “the United States can get about 1.8 trillion barrels of shale (“sedimentary rocks that have rich sources of petroleum and natural gas” (Rogowsky)) a year compared to Saudi
