Possibly, I'm a bit late to the drama. In case I'm not alone, though, allow me to present America's future dilemma. Draw up the lines of engagement.
Would anyone be surprised that oil and gas drilling is currently established in over thirty states? Would anyone be dismayed by the possibility, no matter how remote, that drilling for energy brings potential risk of contamination to our ground water supplies? As it turns out, the push for promoting and developing energy independence via natural gas drilling may possibly, and knowingly, be at the expense of our hydration. I strongly suggest viewing the 30-minute news program, Now on PBS, specifically the segment that aired 26 March, Gasland.
To summarize, the documentary highlights the natural gas industry's practice of hydraulic fractured drilling, or frac. In layman's terms, fracking is to break up rock deep beneath the earth's surface in order to release natural gas trapped in the rock. The process uses millions of gallons of water, mixed with sand and, of great note, a secret chemical that, literally, is off-limits for public knowledge. It's a trade secret and we're not allowed to know. Frightening truth.
It's important to restate that millions of gallons of water is used in the process. Is that best practice for what the world knows as a dwindling resource? Notwithstanding the waste, consider that the practice might contaminate the groundwater in the vicinity of the drilling. A double whammy.
Currently in both houses of Congress, we have the FRAC act under debate. The motivation is to bring hydraulic fractured drilling under the auspices of the EPA, in order to ensure that the SDWA (Safe Drinking Water Act) guidelines are adhered to. Needless to say, the oil & gas industry is lobbying pretty fierce against federal regulation.
Do some research, folks. I gotta tell ya, this is more important than health care, and more dangerous than the risk of the taliban invading the USA.