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The Pros And Cons Of Fracking

998 Words4 Pages

Imagine it’s 8 o’clock Saturday morning, and you and your family are awakened by the sounds of trucks in both your front and back yards. You hear a loud rapping at your front door. You rush to the door, once you open it, there is a man standing there. As you open the door he hands you a binder, and begins to explain who he is, and why he is there. With all the commotion going on, you cannot hear anything he has just said except for, “You have 48 hours till we start to drill. Have a good day” as he turns away and leaves. You’re left standing there confused and angry so you browse through the binder. The very last page of the binder states: you have 48 hours until the big oil and gas companies begin the drilling process. It is unfair that oil …show more content…

Fracking, in short terms, is the way that energy companies extract oil and gas from the Earth. Companies prefer fracking, because fracking is the easiest and most cost-efficient way to extract oil and gas from the Earth. The Lansing State Journal reports that “Michigan started fracking in the 1960s, and by far the state has done a great job at making sure the process does not hurt the residents of the state or their property (“Exposing Myths…” par.18).” Michigan has done a great job so far making sure all the regulations concerning hydraulic fracturing are followed, but who’s to say that the energy companies will continue to follow …show more content…

Many things could go wrong, and sometimes they do. The documentary Gasland does a really great job explaining what hydraulic fracturing is, and shows both the good and the bad sides of the process. Companies come in with drills, trucks, storage containers, and lots of workers. The workers prep the drill for drilling, set up storage containers, and build the backflow pits. Backflow pits are designed to collect any leftover oil or gas that may come back up. After the prep steps are completed, the drilling process begins. A drill begins to drill 5,000 feet into the ground. Next, seven million gallons of water infused with 596 chemicals are blasted into the hole. Once the hole is drilled, a different drill begins to extract the oil or gas from the Earth. The next step is the storage and delivery process. Companies store some of the product at the drilling site in storage containers.. The director of the documentary, Jeff Fox, noted that the storage containers are not fit to store these chemicals. Because of the poor quality of the containers, some of the gases leak out and evaporate into the air. The chemicals released are very harmful (gasland.com). Companies need to find alternative solutions to store their leftover chemicals. Individuals living in communities where fracking is done have the right to breath in safe

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