Protecting environment is a passionate issue most recently hotly debated on a global scale at the 2013 Climate Change Summit in Poland which has brought a host of new environmental concerns to light as well revived opposition to controversial issues, such as fracking, but what is fracking, exactly?
Photo:By Welleman,CC-BY-SA-3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
If you don’t know, you’re not alone. In fact, despite the seemingly large public opposition to fracking, a new study by Yale found that most Americans don’t know what fracking really is.
The Yale study entitled, “Fracking: controversy and communication†was aimed at understanding the public’s perception of fracking. In a poll of 1,061 individuals, less than 10% said that they knew “a lot†about fracking, and just 38% said some or a little. Almost the same number said that they knew “nothing†or “never heard of fracking†at 39% .
Over half of the people surveyed in the Yale study did not have an opinion whether fracking is good or bad, the rest were even in their support and opposition.
Pew Research conducted a public study in March 2013 on the opinions about global warming and issues such as fracking states that “about half of Americans approve†of the process.
With the renewed passion for ecology in America, none of us want to live in a contaminated world or cause disasters, Americans are vigilant in having an opinion. The Yale study confirms that regardless of Americans being well informed about the issue or not, we usually have a strong opinion.
What is Fracking? Here Are The Basics:
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Put simply hydraulic fracking is a process that produces natural gas from shale formations deep below the Earth’s surface by hydraulic drill extraction.
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In 2012 shale gas from fracking added up to 39% of all natural gas produced in the United States.
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The US, Canada and China are the main countries using (or exploring the use of) fracking.
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Natural gas replaces our need and use of coal, which emits half as much CO2 into the atmosphere.
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Fracking uses a mixture of water, sand and chemicals which are pushed into the ground via a hydraulic drill to break up rock which then allows the natural gas to be released and drain out into a well.
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The main reasons for the wide opposition to fracking include; the risk of triggering earthquakes, contaminating groundwater supplies and is a waste of water that cannot be reused in drought prone areas.
Where Is Fracking Going On In The US?
US Groundwater Aquifers Shale Gas
Photo:By Brylie Oxley CC-BY-SA-3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
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