Living with Fracking in Washington County, Pennsylvania

A pivotal EPA study published in 2004 provided the scientific rationale for exemptions that helped unleash the fracking boom. The science in the study was suppressed to protect industry interests.
For Bryan Latkanich in Washington County, and all those who believe their water has been tainted by fracking, there are few remedies.
"I'm just fighting a battle by myself against a billion dollar company," says Latkanich, who is worried fracking on his property has contaminated his well water.
Read the story by Neela Banerjee, "Industrial Strength: How the U.S. Government Hid the Risks of Fracking" at: insideclimatenews.org/news/16...
Part of Choke Hold, a series of stories by InsideClimate News that examines the fossil fuel industry's fight against climate policy, science and clean energy.
Video by Anna Belle Peevey. Reporting by Neela Banerjee.

[@matthewcosta780]

I grew up near here before the fracking started, it's a crying shame now, you can't throw a stone without hitting a well. They poison the land and water supply just like the mines did. And they're ruining all the good farm land and forests. I remember how good the water quality was there when I was a kid.

[@tictac2931]

And where the he'll is all this oil going? We're doing this to our own people yet we're paying the Arabs to get richer and use their gas!? Donald Trump please help....

[@user-ei2up2ii8m]

@@tictac2931 Wondering this as well.. we dont even have "energy independence" like they claimed...even if we did, its NOT worth it...and yet we are getting shafted by Chevron and Halliburton because of corporate lobby power and greedy two-faced politicians.

[@user-ei2up2ii8m]

Fuck those people.

[@keithqueen3554]

Have neighbors going through bad water in New Freeport as I type. No drinking their water anymore.

[@starmessenger8468]

Well, fancy that. Chevron and DEP said their operations in the area did NOT affect Mr. Latkanish's water. That kind of statement lays the burden on the plaintiff, Mr. Latkanish, which means he has to PROVE that Chevron is at fault, a nearly impossible thing to prove...UNLESS you have some VERY DEEP POCKETS like Chevron and the DEP.

[@BobRooney290]

these counties are destroyed. nobody in their right mind would go hunting or fishing or drink its water. anything for profit. this is why bernie's Vermont is better. he has laws enacted that protect the state and its people from corporations that want to come in and destroy everything to make a lousy buck.

[@oldtimeengineer26]

he should have never agreed to. Those companies always lie about what you will make

[@josejuan61]

The bad part is that they will get what they want one way or another :(

[@RS-tz2zn]

Yeah, it sucks he got $150,000. I wish he had given it to me instead.

[@My2CentsYall]

WITH FRACKING you dont see the damage but you know when something goes wrong. You dont see it its not real in peoples minds. The last thing i want is for PA to be like texas with more earth quakes than California. Flashing all that glitter it aint gold. People worry about their property value and you try selling a house in an earthquake prone area...it just too much at risk!

[@RS-tz2zn]

California has an earthquake every 3 minutes on average, or 480/day. Texas averages about 9 earthquakes per day. Please know what you are talking about before spewing this crap. www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2019/04/every-three-minutes-one-earthquake-california/ www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes/texas/archive/2020-sep-.html

[@starmessenger8468]

Someone please remind me. If an oil, gas, or coal company makes me an offer I can't refuse (millions of dollars in compensation if I sign...), remind NOT to sign ANYTHING.

[@artsci2716]

Somebody I know has leukemia due to cracking water. It is all about corporate greed!

[@franciskhoury4288]

Costly profits...

[@skeezzyyjibbzz9758]

whos here from Mr Williams class

[@uh7948]

ayo wassup

[@lmontader0rderlmontadar0rd95]

Sahrawi histoire 1976 Le Sahara occidental capital de le monde car le dernier gouvernement du mahdi el montader c'est logique pour information

[@RS-tz2zn]

Let me debunk some myths... 1. Fracking harms the water supply - This not true because fracking takes place at a deeper level in the ground that where the water supply is, in fact here is a link to 26 studies done from MIT to the USGS all saying that no instances have been found of Fracking hurting the water supply...www.cred.org/scientists-fracking-doesnt-harm-water/ 2. Fracking causes huge earthquakes that damage people's homes - This is also not true, as the vast majority of earthquakes have a magnitude less than 1 and aren't even felt. The largest earthquake ever recorded was a 4.5 earthquake, which is a considered a light earthquake and not something to cause any serious damage.... "Western Canada has experienced a few moderate-sized fracking earthquakes with magnitudes up to about 4.5, but they mostly occurred in remote locations far from major human settlements. And even in western Canada, only about one in 300 fracking operations causes earthquakes large enough for a person to feel, said Eyre. "In North America at the moment, we haven't had any hydraulic fracturing-induced earthquakes that have actually caused any damage," said Eyre." insidescience.org/news/2019-year-fracking-earthquakes-turned-deadly#:~:text=3%2C%202019%20were%20all%20caused,magnitudes%20of%204.7%20and%204.3

[@NuniqueNewNork]

And let me say, it's really hard to know all the consequences.. You kinda sound like you're working in a PR job at Exxon or Chevron right now. Did you write that comment while getting paid to do it? Do you receive the bulk of your income from the oil companies? Come on... you do, don't you? PS. While they're good at what they do... MIT and USGS aren't perfect, nor are they incorruptible. =)

[@RS-tz2zn]

@@NuniqueNewNork Thank you for not presenting any science to contradict anything I said, and just making up stuff that I must be a shill for the oil companies or something. The truth is that I did used to work for an oil company many years ago, but have not worked in that industry for over 7 years. I just saw all of the lies and crap that companies in that industry put up with from people like you making up crap and having no idea what they are talking about.