"If there's a new way..."

Yesterday, Megadeth founder Dave Mustaine more or less endorsed Rick Santorum for president (pic at right courtesy of The Atlantic Wire). As of late, he's said he hasn't "endorsed him" but the effect has been kind of endorsement. I've been a Megadeth fan for years. I know Mustaine has converted to Christianity, something I don't find particularly upsetting, but his endorsement of Santorum was very confusing. So I wrote him a letter (also posted to their Facebook page that they have since removed).

So what's the rub? Megadeth's songs include some of the best metal criticisms of political corruption and complicated human-induced environmental problems. Selecting Rock Santorum is more than a little bit confusing. I admit that selecting any major party politician today faces us with with some big problems. But on the environmental front, Santorum has been a major part of what Chris Mooney named "the Republican war on science." It's really too bad.

Their most famous song, "Peace Sells...But Who's Buyin'" says,

If there's a new way
I'll be the first in line
But it better work this time

[...] What do you mean I couldn't be the president of the United States of America? It's still 'We the people' right?

Right or RIGHT? As someone who has worked on sustainability issues now for several years, I can't get how it is going to work this time, especi

Here's my letter...type-o's and all:

Dave,

I can respect your views and find them confusing. It’s too bad you removed my comment. There’s a bigger point here that several people are talking about. We are frankly confused how one of the most seemingly environmentally aware and politically intelligent people we have looked up to can even entertain the idea of voting for Rick Santorum. Well…we might be able to understand it but we don’t really get it.

Before I go on, I want to say that I don’t mean this to be shouting at you. I’m mostly confused and want an explanation. I guess you don’t have to give me one. I’m just one guy who was once a kid who heard “Holy Wars,” “Hangar 18,” and “Five Magics,” and was totally thrilled. I’ve gone on to write the “Heavy Metal” entry for an encyclopedia coming out in the next year, The Encyclopedia of Music and American Culture. Megadeth certainly earned its place in that entry.

On one hand, I get that you are not the person you were when you wrote most of your albums. You’ve led a very public life. Part of that life has been about politics. Seriously, when you did the MTV Rock the Vote stuff in ’92, I thought that was pretty cool. I was 16 and from a politically-minded family.

Unlike some commentors on this thread, I don’t think Megadeth is “just music.” It’s clear that you, like Sepultura, Testament, Xentrix, Nuclear Assault, Kreator, Revocation, Heathen, Forbidden, and some other awesome bands work to raise social consciousness. It’s not dumb kid’s noise. It has a purpose. You’ve always had a purpose…full-fledged aggression mixed with a moral approach to the world that is neither condescending nor authoritarian. I’m sure I’m about the thousandth person who’s written to you to say that lines like from Rust In Peace and Countdown to Extinction played in my mind over and over again. As someone who’s minded politics and the environment, Megadeth serves a special place.

I can’t help but note that Countdown to Extinction came out in 1992. That’s the year of the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. The young girl talking in the song “Countdown to Extinction” is forever linked in my mind with the young girl who spoke at the Rio Summit. I get it. Those are my links and they’re not many other people’s. But I bring it up for a reason. Rick Santorum will be an environmental ruin for this country.

I’ll just give three examples: hamstringing the EPA, climate change, and hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling for natural gas in Pennsylvania. First, Santorum, like too many Republicans these days would like to defund, hamstring, or eliminate the federal Environmental Protection Agency. In a world where corporate influence far outweighs the good work of some religious people or the ability of common people to protect their water, their air, or their children, this is baffling. The EPA is sometimes the only bulwark “we the people” have to protect us from industrial pollution.

Second, Santorum denies climate change. He calls the science behind it “junk science.” That is junk thinking. It is basic chemistry and physics. The trend line from an incredible amount of data – some of it going back tens of millions of years – shows that the earth today is at a particularly warm period. More importantly, the earth is warmer than it has ever been during human history. That warming trend, which is continuing and accelerating, is inextricably linked to the release of carbon dioxide and methane from humans burning fossil fuels. The only “junk” out there on this comes from the fossil fuel industry and the politicians – like Rick Santorum – who have enslaved themselves to those industries. [See point #1 about the EPA above.] I find it interesting that you would vote for Santorum given what you wrote in “Dawn Patrol”:

Pretending not to notice

How history had forbode us

With the greenhouse in effect

Our environment was wrecked

That’s a pretty clear warning to me. Are you backing away from that? Santorum isn’t the only Republican with this view by any means but he is the most vocal of the four left standing.

Third, Pennsylvania where I live and where Santorum is from has been undergoing a natural gas rush. Santorum recently told a crowd in Oklahoma that there is “nothing” to worry about. In case you don’t know, two new technologies have been put together to get at massive gas reserves in shale beds. We can drill thousands of feet into the earth and turn the drill bit and go horizontally for thousands of feet. Then, having bored a hole around a mile down and a mile across (give or take depending on conditions) the well is hydraulically fractured. By blasting a mixture of fresh water, some sand, and a cancerous (literally) cocktail of biocides, lubricants, and other chemicals into the earth at upwards of 14,000 pounds per square inch, the shale bed can by stimulated into releasing gas back up the well bore to the well head. People refer to this process as fracking. It is an environmental and community health ruin.

I have met people from across the state now who can’t drink their well water because of these processes. Some of them can set their taps on fire. That’s cool a couple of times. But it’s not cool to have to have a gas ventilation system set up in your house because your water leaks so much methane your house could explode. I know people who have been ripped off. Cattle, dogs, horses, cats, chickens, song birds, and fish have all been killed by fracking. I know people whose property value has plummeted 85% because of damage to their water. Little kids waking up in the middle of the night with their noses bleeding and doctors reporting that kids have elevated levels of toxins in their bodies. People losing hair. Headaches. Just wait for the cancer clusters. Just two weeks ago, Carl Stiles killed himself because he had become so ill from what his family is certain was fracking pollution.

Santorum called this all “the boogey man.” He said, “Ooh, all this bad stuff's going to happen, we don't know all these chemicals and all this stuff, What's going to happen? Let me tell you what's going to happen, nothing's going to happen." Call me uncouth, but as a Pennsylvanian, that’s garbage. The people of Dimock, Pennsylvania lost their water from gas drilling. When the state government and the company stopped providing that water who stepped in? First it was neighboring communities. But then the EPA came and has supplied the water. Once again, we are back at number one.

So I know you said you admired Santorum for his going back to be with his kid. As a father myself, I too am touched by that. Every day that I get to spend with a healthy and happy boy is a day worth more than my life. And I mean no disrespect to you when I say that it affects you differently than it does me given your family history and your father’s negligence as you’ve written about it. Santorum’s devotion to fatherhood is admirable. And certainly, given your vocal embrace of Christianity, his faith is too.

But why does it stop with his son? What about the son getting ill from fracking operations or the arsenic in his water from mountain top removal in West Virginia or Kentucky? What about the boys and girls exposed to the pollution of coal and gas power plants around this nation that create cancer clusters and literally billions of dollars in medical treatment for human-caused industrial disease. It’s no accident that asthma, leukemia, and other awful illnesses proliferate near, downwind, and downstream of polluting industries. Why isn’t Santorum a father for those people and protect them as much as he would protect his own children?

If you’re still reading this I appreciate it. Yeah. My first reaction was pretty strong. I felt like maybe never buying another Megadeth album. Maybe it would be boycott time. But I guess that I, like a lot of other people, can’t square this circle. We just want to understand.

See, it’s not that I ain’t kind. I’m just not his kind. And, like you, I still believe that it’s all for we the people…not we the corporations. If there's a new way, I'll be the first in line. Rick Santorum is not the new way.

He should never be president. Ever.

Peter Buckland

Faces in Gasland

Come to Mark Schmerling's event depicting the the effects of shale gas drilling in Pennsylvania on March 22nd. He will briefly trace his immersion into the environmental documentary field, and then discuss his Marcellus images and the stories of the people in the photos.

To learn more, visit Sierra Club Moshannon's website.

Marcellus Protest 2011 Redux

On Friday November 18th, ralliers came together to demand change on the cost of doing business in the Marcellus shale and celebrate State College's passage of the Community Bill of Rights and Fracking Ban on November 4th. Read the storythe Centre Daily Times, WJAC TV, WTAJ TV, and follow-up story was printed online at The Daily Collegian.

We include here video excerpts courtesy of ScavengerhuntPA, a citizen finding unplugged wells across the commonwealth.

Responsible Drilling Alliance member Barb Jarmoska at Old Main...


..and at the Penn Stater outside of the Marcellus Summit.


Nathan Sooy of Clean Water Action.


Jeff Schmidt of Sierra Club Pennsylvania.


Pittsburgh councilman, Dough Shields.


Sustainability Now's Peter Buckland reads the letter we delivered to Penn State President Rodney Erickson, the Board of Trustees, and the staff at the Marcellus Center for Outreach and Research. Read the letter here.


We will follow up with President Erickson's response when we receive one.

Groundswells Matter

The past week has been remarkable for environmental sustainability and energy.

On the local level, the State College Borough passed a Community Bill of Rights that includes a fracking ban. The referendum was passed nearly 3:1. This was in large part due to the work of Groundswell PA led by Braden Crooks and our team at work on the ground with EC3 and Sierra Club Moshannon.

On the national level, President Obama has delayed the Keystone XL Pipeline which would connect the dirty tar sands oil fields to Texas refineries and shipping. Last Sunday, 12,000 people surrounded the White House to show people want something different - less carbon, less pollution, more health, and more sustainability. People from the Centre Region have been involved in these issues. In September, Toni Gripp Brink went to Washington to join Bill McKibben, Josh Fox, Naomi Klein, James Hansen, and hundreds of others to protest the pipeline and the tar sands. Last weekend, Krystn Madrine of the Sustainable Kitchen went with her daughter to be in the human chain surrounding the White House. Obama landed in his helicopter during the event. It must have been quite a sight.

Perhaps Groundswells are on the rise. Occupy movements. Surrounding the White House. The recent Ohio referendum revoking the anti-union work of Ohio's governor. What's next?

Dairy Farm Protests in Butler County

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports that Butler County residents are protesting drilling operations at a dairy farm (pic at right from Marcellus Protest).

They report:

"There's no way this drilling can contaminate our milk," Larry Wendereusz, general manager of the dairy operating facility, said in an phone interview Friday. "Our milk is tested for everything ... we run all kinds of tests."

Members of the advocacy group Marcellus Outreach Butler believe otherwise. They chanted slogans and complained that the planned underground hydraulic drilling will put crops, livestock and milk at risk for contamination. The group gathered in front of the drilling rig that sits next to the Marburger property along Mars-Evans City Road.

"They're not being a good neighbor," Alex Stehman of Saxonburg said about the farm. She said she no longer buys Marburger milk in an attempt to send a message to the farm's owners. "Organic farmers are more responsible."

On last week's show we touched this issue briefly. There are some farmers leasing their land while many organic farmers allege their operations are threatened by gas operations' because of possible groundwater contamination, air pollution, methane migration into wells, and other issues. But gas companies and some farmers argue these worries are unfounded and possibly hysterical.

In 2010, 28 cows were quarantined after exposure to fracking fluid. This year a Chesapeake Energy well blew out in Leroy Township sent thousands of gallons of frack water into a nearby stream for at least 12 hours. Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has said that the stream was not compromised and fined Chesapeake over $1 million. DEP said:

“It is important to me and to this administration that natural gas drillers are stewards of the environment, take very seriously their responsibilities to comply with our regulations, and that their actions do not risk public health and safety or the environment,” DEP Secretary Mike Krancer said. “The water well contamination fine is the largest single penalty DEP has ever assessed against an oil and gas operator, and the Avella tank fire penalty is the highest we could assess under the Oil and Gas Act. Our message to drillers and to the public is clear.”

Protesters have some warrant given some recent history. But what are the chances that cow's milk could be contaminated with gas drilling pollutants? Does anyone even have this data?

Josh Fox at Shale Gas Outrage

Gasland director Josh Fox all called on the Shale Gas Outrage crowd last Wednesday to keep gas drilling out of the Delaware River Basin. Having just been arrested for civil disobedience in Washington, D.C. over tar sands oil and the proposed Keystone XL pipeline (see here and here) he asked people to confront the Delaware River Basin Commission on October 21st and demand a basin-wide fracking ban. He distributed the DRBC's phone number to the crowd, some of whom called DRBC on the spot. You can call them at (609) 883-9500. If push comes to shove, he believes people are going to have to be civilly disobedient and be arrested. Watch his speech here.



We want to know, do you think that fracking is worthy of civil disobedience? Should people pursue the regular channels of regulation and legislation? Or is this all what former Governor Ridge called "phony hysteria"?

Today's show: Groundswell and Outrage [Updated]

Today at 4 pm, we'll be airing our first show of the fall season. It will be as fresh and local as we can make it.

Braden Crooks, founder of Groundswell will be on to discuss the what and the why of an Environmental Bill of Rights and a ban on hydraulic fracturing proposed for popular vote in State College, Pennsylvania. [For more see last week's blog post.] What rights does the other-than-human environment deserve? What are our responsibilities to it? What are our responsibilities to future generations of people and their living places and the organisms and systems that will support them? It's no small thing to wrap your head around.


After the 4:30 break we'll be joined by Iris Marie Bloom of Protecting Our Waters. She is one of the principle organizers of Shale Gas Outrage rally and demonstration and the Freedom From Fracking conference this Wednesday, September 7th in Philadelphia. They write,

This demonstration is in response to the Marcellus Shale Coalition’s conference in Philadelphia on Sept. 7th and 8th. CEOs from major fracking companies will be plotting to expand their poisonous operations in PA, NY, OH, MD, WV, VA, and NJ. Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett and former governors Tom Ridge and Ed Rendell will be speaking in support of the industry. Dubbed “Shale Gas Insight,” this is not only a key trade show for the industry, but also a brazen expression of its political muscle.

Today, Bloom will give us the rundown about what we can expect next in the continued wrangling over the natural gas rush in Pennsylvania.

Sustainability Now's Peter Buckland was at the demonstration on Wednesday [read here], doing interviews and getting the inside scoop. People from across the commonwealth were there demanding change, all while being called liars or hysterical by the gas industry.

Perhaps Groundswell's Environmental Bill of Rights is the wave of the future for communities seeking some respite from natural resource extraction, habitat fragmentation, and pollution. Bolivia, following in the footsteps of Ecuador, is set to pass a historic Law of Mother Earth that would grant other-than-human nature equal rights. Is State College next?

Listen this Friday from 4-5 pm on The Lion 90.7 fm. Feel free to call in at 865-9577.

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Here is a copy of the Environmental Bill of Rights itself.

Is any message what it's FRACKED up to be?

Responsible Drilling Alliance recently got this billboard up in Williamsport, Pennsylvnia (picture courtesy of Citizen Sane). In the world of messaging, competing marketing and advertising, it can be hard to break through the noise.

Compare that image to the Range Resources billboards out there or their website, MyRangeResources.com.

People on all sides of this issue are being bombarded by messages and images but it seems that few stick. Let's face it, most of us come into this issue with some pretty powerful preconceived notions about water quality and job creation, taxes and outdoor recreation, or air quality and property rights. And they're in tension with one another a lot of the time. So how do you get people to look at something differently?

What messages do you want to see or think we need to see?

Andean fracking? No thank you.

New York Times contributor Stanley Fish is one of America's best known and engaging public academic intellectuals. In yesterday's Times he tackled natural gas development and fracking as seen by residents of Andes, New York (link here). It is both sobering and hopeful.

Fish writes,

Then came the evening’s centerpiece, three-minute prepared statements delivered by townspeople who had signed up in advance. It is often said that the opponents of fracking are mostly second-home-owners and weekenders who selfishly prefer their enjoyment of a bucolic landscape to the needs of the long-termers who came before them. But the speakers who stood up to have their say represented every sector of the population — farmers, small-business owners, real estate agents, six-generation natives, newcomers, artists, musicians.

As different as they were, the message was the same and it was eloquently proclaimed: “What we have here is unique and beautiful.” “We have to take action to keep the town we love.” “We must take our destiny into our own hands.” “Andes could become the model for the country.” One of the speakers was a local and a folksinger. She made up a song on the spot and taught it to everyone. The refrain was “If we work together / Then we can make it better.”

It is striking to read this as a Pennsylvanian where natural gas development has barely been checked by citizens at all and coddled by the legislature, two governors, and what some have called a gutless regulatory bureaucracy and enforcement branch. I don't doubt that people in Andes, New York have seen what's happening in Pennsylvania and reached Fish's conclusion.

There was agreement that regulation wasn’t the answer, first because no regulation could prevent the disasters that come along inevitably with a project this large, and second because the state couldn’t be counted on either to pass or enforce regulations: “I can’t trust an industry that has got itself exempted from the air and clean water act.” The position that emerged at the end of the evening was simple and unequivocal: “You can’t regulate them but you can ban them if you are sophisticated enough legally and if you remain strong and stay the course.” Every statement was greeted with loud applause. One speaker called for a straw poll. “Anyone in favor of fracking?” Not a hand was raised.

“Inspiring” is not a word I usually use, but this evening was inspiring. The devotion to community, the civic-mindedness, the sheer intelligence displayed by everyone who spoke was a more powerful argument for coming to Andes than the beauties and attractions listed by the Post. But the argument will come to nothing, and everything the Post celebrates will be no more, if the rural birthright of Andes is sold for a mess of fracking.

Will Pennsylvanians be so inspired? Will we turn this tide?

Corporate censorship

According to a newletter sent out to environmental groups today this billboard was taken down. It was paid for by the Sautner family of Dimock, Pennsylvania who have had their water contaminated by gas drilling operations, a contention fully supported by a Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection investigation. You can watch some coverage before it was torn down here at News Channel 34 or read more about the clash over the billboard at The Citizen's Voice.

New York could continue drilling moratorium until June 2012

This is just in from the New York State Assembly:

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Environmental Conservation Committee Chair Robert K. Sweeney today announced that legislation to suspend the issuance of new permits for hydrofracking in New York State until June 1, 2012, was reported out of the Environmental Conservation Committee today.

"For the sake of our environment's safety and the integrity of our drinking water, I think it is appropriate and responsible for the state to take additional time to thoroughly study all the data that is available and forthcoming about hydrofracking before approving any additional permits," said Silver (D-Manhattan).

Under the bill (A.7400, Sweeney), no permits would be issued for new wells that use the hydrofracking process to extract natural gas or oil until June 2012. The moratorium called for in the measure will provide the legislature with additional time to review the Draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement, which the Department of Environmental Conservation is currently preparing.

Health and environmental concerns have been raised by communities across the nation where hydrofracking has been used to retrieve natural gas and oil. Reports of water contamination, habitat destruction and chemical spills have occurred in states that have permitted hyrdrofracking, including Ohio, Pennsylvania, Colorado and others. The Environmental Protection Agency, at the direction of Congress, is studying hydrofracking and is expected to release its report at the end of 2012.

"This legislation ensures that we do not embrace this drilling technology without examining all the risks. During our lifetime we have seen many environmental disasters that could have been avoided had all the facts been known before approvals were given. It's important that we in New York State get our policy on hydrofracking right, the first time," said Sweeney (D-Lindenhurst).

"There are too many unknowns about what kind of impact hydrofracking has on the environment. To be anything but cautious on this matter would be reckless and a threat to our environment and the health of New Yorkers," said Silver, who noted he expects the Assembly to approve the bill during this legislative session.

"Fracked" - The Music Video

Like the funk?

Susquehanna named "Most Endangered River"

This week American Rivers named the Susquehanna River the most endangered river in the United States. Why? Massive unconventional gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale. It seems there is no end to bad news in Pennsylvania on gas extraction.

They report:

“Natural gas drilling poses one of the greatest risks our nation’s rivers have faced in decades,” says Andrew Fahlund, senior vice president for conservation at American Rivers. “Without strong regulations, public health and drinking water will be threatened by the toxic, cancer-causing pollution that results from hydraulic fracturing.”

“The Susquehanna is one of the most ancient rivers on Earth. In its current state, it is a far cry from the pristine and primeval watershed that existed only a few centuries ago. The threat posed by the natural gas industry and horizontal hydrofracturing will eclipse the environmental legacy of the lumber and coal-mining industries combined, and as a long-time advocate for the protection of the Susquehanna, I believe we must call for an immediate moratorium on all water withdrawals and all natural gas drilling until the technology and legislation catches up with the desire and need to exploit these fossil-fuel resources,” said Don Williams, Susquehanna River Sentinel.

"Recent problems caused by poorly-regulated gas drilling in Pennsylvania include: ground water pollution in Susquehanna County resulting in loss of a community's drinking water, a blowout in Bradford County that went uncontrolled, allowing toxic fracking chemicals to flow into the Susquehanna, deadly accidents at a gas well site as well as chemical spills, explosions and fires. We call on the Susquehanna River Basin Commission to immediately impose a moratorium on any new drilling in the Susquehanna River Basin, as was done by the Delaware River Basin Commission,” said Jeff Schmidt, Director of the Sierra Club Pennsylvania Chapter. "Until Pennsylvania, the SRBC and the federal government adopt new laws and regulations to fully protect public health and the environment from the dangers of Marcellus Shale gas drilling, no new drilling should be allowed,” Schmidt continued.

Don Williams, who writes at the Susquehanna River Sentinel, was on our show last year. He has long been skeptical of the gas industry and its impact on the Susquehanna, a river has called "a crown jewel." In a recent post, he lamented the Susquehanna River Basin Commission's response to the "Most Endangered" label which it sees as a way of raising awareness but not necessarily scientifically accurate nor enabling better regulation of the river.

Specifically, they respond, "Many in the public who oppose or are very wary of this practice believe the overriding concern relates to the potential impacts to water quality, which falls outside of SRBC’s regulatory responsibilities."

Williams sees things differently. Citing eight instances of water quality in the SRBC's compact, he writes the compact "appears to give the SRBC - at minimum - the opportunity to expand its authority if deemed necessary. I, for one, think it's long overdue."

In our search to understand what should be done with the gas boom, we are going to be exploring what stakeholders across the spectrum think regulation should be.

America's Rivers advocate the following four measures.

• A moratorium on hydraulic fracturing along the Susquehanna until better protections are in place;
• Analysis by the Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC) of impacts to clean water, and issuance and enforcement of proper regulations.
• Removal by Congress of loopholes that have helped the natural gas industry bypass major environmental regulations.
• Passage by Congress of the FRAC Act of 2011, which calls for regulation of fracking by the Environmental Protection Agency and requires disclosure of the chemicals used in the procedure. The legislation would also repeal a provision added to the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that exempts the natural gas industry from complying with the Safe Drinking Water Act.

What do you think regulations should be?

Anthony Ingraffea: Development of Natural Gas from Shales: Some Myths and Realities

“Marcellus Shale, Fracking, Fossil Fuels-again”

Tuesday May 10th 7:00 PM
Location: HUB Auditorium
Penn State Campus, University Park, PA
Cornell Professor Anthony Ingraffea

Development of Natural Gas from Shales: Some Myths and Realities

We will evaluate myth and facts concerning some of the more notable issues involved in development of unconventional natural gas wells in shale formations.

Among these are:

• Such development is a 60-year-old Well-Proven Technology
• Operators in PA are Recycling 90% or more of their fluid wastes
• Gas Migration from Faulty Wells is a rare phenomenon
  

Sponsored by:
Penn State Eco-Action
Sierra Club Moshannon Group

Co-Sponsors:

Clearwater Conservancy
Environment-Ecology-Education
Halfmoon Township
Juniata Valley Audubon
Little Juniata River Association
Penn State Center for Sustainability
Rock Ethics Institute
Science, Technology and Society Program
Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited
Sustainability Now Radio
CNET coverage made possible by Halfmoon Township

New York's Attorney General Threatens Suit

Well blows frack water in Bradford County

In LeRoy Township in Bradford County near Canton, Pennsylvania, a well blew out last night while Chesapeake Energy was fracking the well. According to WNEP TV, there is "a massive operation" by officials and Chesapeake to control the spill. According to their story, "the well blew near the surface, spilling thousands and thousands of gallons of frack fluid over containment walls, through fields, personal property and farms, even where cattle continue to graze." However, there were no injuries.

However, the spill has already reached Towanda Creek which flows to the Susquehanna River. DEP will monitor water near the blowout. Watch the story here:



It is curious that the reporter in this story does not name the specific or types of chemicals that would come back up from a fracked well. The story mentions the high salinity of the water but nothing about known carcinogens like benzene or naphthalene, the biocides or lubricants involved, nor the radioactive materials or total dissolved solids (TDS) that "produced water" from a well contains. In a world where we hope that the news can serve us well, this particular aspect of reporting seems woefully lacking in its ability to provide the public with information that could serve its interest. If this case is like others, then the cattle at that farm will be quarantined for fear of milk or meat contamination.

This is also especially interesting given that "The Landman's Manual" was recently leaked (highly recommended reading). In this manual used by people who go to property owners to lease their land to gas companies. In it, they instruct landmen to do the following things. On fracking they advise the following:

"Hydraulic Fracturing, 'Fracking' - This technique to develop gas resources is coming under scrutiny, both in the mainstream media with articles appearing in the New York Times, and even in Hollywood with the movie 'Gasland'. Expect questions on this topic and be ready to diffuse land owner concerns."

Further, they say,

"If anyone knows about slick water fracturing, avoid the topic. DO NOT discuss the chemicals and other material used during slick water fracturing. The best strategy is to say that the chemical mixtures used are proprietary and are highly diluted with water when injected. Reassure landowners that no well contamination has ever been documented. Do not mention water contamination in Pennsylvania."

This news report seems to follow a slightly weaker version of this kind of policy. Avoid alarm, there is nothing to fear, and continue as if this is business as usual. In fact, the neighbor who has refused to leave seems like he has adopted this position.

Like writers at Grist and Desmog Blog, the tragic irony that this is occurring on the anniversary of the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster has not been lost on us. And it's hard to look at this and not feel frightened by these events. To paraphrase what Barb Jarmoska from the Responsible Drilling Alliance told us a two weeks ago on the show, we are in a precarious position in Pennsylvania. It's enough to wonder how responsibly gas extraction can be done.

It will be interesting to see how activists, officials, elected officials, and regulators act in days to come.

Drilling responsibly?

That question drove today's show. Barb Jarmoska of the Responsible Drilling Alliance came on the show today. They are a group that "Seeking truth about the consequences of deep shale gas drilling." Jarmoska walked us through numerous problems that Pennsylvanians face when it comes to the shale gas drilling. It ranges from the well-known damage in our state forests to the migration of gas into roughly 70 wells in Bradford County and the corporatization of the state government.

What's to be done? Get involved with RDA and other groups. Give a listen here and feel free to leave comments below.

PBS Need to Know: The Price of Gas

In all of our discussion of natural gas development in the Marcellus Shale region, and soon the Utica Shale region, we have not looked much at what is happening in other parts of the country. The PBS show, Need to Know, did a special last year on the effects to water and communities of hydraulic fracturing and gas development in the Wyoming shale plays. Watch it here:



What do you think of the argument that companies can use "intellectual property" as a reason to hide harmful chemical mixtures to which the public could be exposed?