In whole to-frack-or-not-to-frack debate that’s gripped Ohio, a new report is being tossed around on the economic impact that could flood the state if Columbus doesn’t slam the breaks on the controversial shale drilling technique.
The report is full of a lot of eye-candy stats, including the prediction that by 2014 the shale industry would be responsible for $4.9 billion in new investment and 66,000 jobs — the kind of numbers that keep economic development nerds sleepless at night. The AP wrote up the results of the study, and the article has popped up all over the web, from the Huffington Post to Yahoo. But while everyone’s guzzling down the findings, no one seems interested in who brewed up the information in the first place.
The study was commissioned by the Ohio Shale Coalition, a “broad-based statewide partnership for affordable energy and jobs,” in PR speak. The group is a bunch of businesses, organizations and individuals organized by the Ohio Chamber of Commerce to “maximize the jobs and economic potential of shale gas,” according to the group’s web site. (We emailed the chamber to ask for a list of the members of the coalition to see who’s actually picking up the check — no response yet). They tapped energy and geology people from Cleveland State University, Ohio State University, and Marietta’s Department of Petroleum Engineering to crunch the numbers.
This article appears in Feb 29 – Mar 6, 2012.
Would be very interesting to see who is picking up the check and more so how much are they spending their ‘Hallelujah Fracking’ campaign(s).
Was there any correlation between the earthquakes of Youngstown and fracking? Does fracking ever contaminate our water? Are the chemicals which are pressurized to push the gas to the surface safe for drinking water? Do we value the water which might become contaminated by fracking? Or could we just tell the people to move and if they stay they just need to boil the water? If the water can become contaminated, is treatment to bring it into spec very expensive or hard? How much contamination could occur under worst-case senerios? Who stands to profit the most and why? Because of leverage of politics? Membership in the various chambers of commerse? Have the chambers of commerse become almost all republican now? Like the one who hates Sherrod Brown so much? That’s the US chamber, right? How can that be controlled by politics? Or how about the Norquist Pledge? How can our politicians sign a pledge to a guy and his business friends that can trump the will of the people they are representing?
SEE WHAT HAPPENS WHEN REPUBLICANS TAKE CONTROL ! now bend over a little further because they arn’t finished .
Personally I think ‘fracking’ is like playing ‘Russian Roulette’ with the environment and of Earth itself. Earthquakes are a potential where fracking activities takes place as well the contamination of ground water which has been proven to be a very real factor in fracking. There is another concern I have. When roadways buckle its usually caused by high prolonged heat or where ground waters flush out enough under a roadway to destabilize the deck where there is nothing underneath to support it. Fracking leaves a vacuum. The other is the poisoning of ground water – do that, and one ends up with water that can’t be used for anything. Sure the numbers are glowing, but at a very heavy price. My bets are the people involved in fracking don’t live in the areas being fracked, otherwise they would not be fracking in the given area. I fully agree with Kenny Jaeger that a lot of hard questions need to be asked – my feeling is the real answers would make a great horror movie! There are alternatives to generating power that does not involve burning fossil fuels in the process – solar, wind, geothermal and now magnetic motors which power themselves – there is an example of this on the homepage of Mall 727 which demonstrates magnetic motors being used in cars. The same can be used to power homes and manufacturing plants. Oil and petroleum as well natural gas are used in medicines and other disciplines, so there will always be a need for them, but we must take into account that both oil, coal and gas supplies are finite – once they are gone – they’re gone, period. As to nuclear energy, the radio active rods used in the process must be stored for generations before they are safe to handle. We’ve had enough warnings between Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, Perry and now Japan to realize the plants are not safe just because the nuclear industry says so – they are not. When I get told something can never happen here, that’s when I worry. When I see commercials from the petroleum and natural gas industries say we have 100 years or so of supplies, I have a great laugh over that one – how stupid does the petroleum and natural gas industries think we are? First off when natural fossil-based supplies dries up, it becomes more expensive – predictions are a gallon of gas will cost $5.00 by summer. I had a friend tell be today that he spends $100 a week to keep both his car and van fueled up! And after the fossil fuels dry up, what then? Nobody in either the petroleum and gas industries wants to answer that question? Sorry, but dragging our feet on sustainable energy research is not an answer.
fracking can be very contaminating to ground water , for wildlife and crops, and for drinking water wells ! Chemicals used in the fracking process can be and are harmful to your health. But the general public still greed’s for OIL. The Oil shortage was started in 1974 During the Richard M Nixon presidency and under the Republican leadership, and has not gotten any better in 38 years of price gouging. Back in 1974 there were not any good or reasonable options , but today there is. Only ignorance and the Republican party are holding us back… SUPPORT ETHANOL . It is the future. Return the State back to Democratic control, and return the authority over Gas and oil drilling and fracking back to local Governments that do care about your future and your neighborhoods . At the present time Local Government has NO control over Gas and oil interests. Gas and oil companies have NO intention of Stopping for the well being of anybody. The only thing that they are interested in is $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Money $$$$$$$$$$$$$.
Fracking is good for the environment – studies show that fracking can actually reverse global warming. Just think of the possibilities!