The Misfortune of Secrets
Word count: 1,793
The Misfortune of Secrets Imagine a new type of technology that will decrease our unemployment rate, create many years’ worth of natural gas and crude oil in the United States, and reduce domestic imports of crude oil and natural gas, which would then improve national security. There actually is a technology that does such things. It’s called hydraulic fracturing, but it isn’t necessarily new. Hydraulic fracturing has been around since the 1940’s but has really started to boom in the mid-2000’s. it is the process of releasing natural gas from compact rocks, mostly from shale. The process involves injecting millions of gallons of a mixture of water and many chemicals into an underground rock formation in order to open factures, which release trapped gas or crude oil through a pipe to the surface. Now imagine walking out on your front porch experiencing excruciating pains in your lungs and head, expecting to see your once beautiful green and luscious front yard, but you actually see a field filled with sand and wells everywhere you look; along with that, there is a horrid gassy smell. This is what many Americans will begin to experience if hydraulic fracturing keeps expanding in the United States. Hydraulic fracturing is believed to have had many negative effects on the environment, such as contamination of groundwater, seismic events, and on human health. Although hydraulic fracturing is good for our economy, the disadvantages far outweigh the advantages. Many people may believe that the employment aspect of hydraulic fracturing is a major reason to keep it around so that we can boost the American economy. According to the article “The Rush to Drill for Natural Gas,” from 2000 to 2008, the number of wells in the state of New York went from 6,845 to 13,687, and it is predicted that an additional 80,000 wells could be drilled within the next decade (Finkel 2). With all these fracturing sites being built, employees need to be hired to do jobs
The Misfortune of Secrets Imagine a new type of technology that will decrease our unemployment rate, create many years’ worth of natural gas and crude oil in the United States, and reduce domestic imports of crude oil and natural gas, which would then improve national security. There actually is a technology that does such things. It’s called hydraulic fracturing, but it isn’t necessarily new. Hydraulic fracturing has been around since the 1940’s but has really started to boom in the mid-2000’s. it is the process of releasing natural gas from compact rocks, mostly from shale. The process involves injecting millions of gallons of a mixture of water and many chemicals into an underground rock formation in order to open factures, which release trapped gas or crude oil through a pipe to the surface. Now imagine walking out on your front porch experiencing excruciating pains in your lungs and head, expecting to see your once beautiful green and luscious front yard, but you actually see a field filled with sand and wells everywhere you look; along with that, there is a horrid gassy smell. This is what many Americans will begin to experience if hydraulic fracturing keeps expanding in the United States. Hydraulic fracturing is believed to have had many negative effects on the environment, such as contamination of groundwater, seismic events, and on human health. Although hydraulic fracturing is good for our economy, the disadvantages far outweigh the advantages. Many people may believe that the employment aspect of hydraulic fracturing is a major reason to keep it around so that we can boost the American economy. According to the article “The Rush to Drill for Natural Gas,” from 2000 to 2008, the number of wells in the state of New York went from 6,845 to 13,687, and it is predicted that an additional 80,000 wells could be drilled within the next decade (Finkel 2). With all these fracturing sites being built, employees need to be hired to do jobs
Cited: Dammel, Joseph A., et al. “A Tale of Two Technologies: Hydraulic Fracturing and Geologic Carbon Sequestration.” Environmental Science & Technology 45.12 (2011): 5075-076. Business Search Premier. 14 April 2012 Daly, John. “U.S. Government Confirms Link Between Earthquakes and Hydraulic Fracturing.” Foreign Policy Journal. WordPress, 10 Nov. 2011. Web. 16 April. 2012. <http://foreignpolicyjournal.com/2011/11/10/u-s-government-confirms-link-between-earthquakes-and-hydraulic-fracturing/> Finkel, Madelon L. “The Rush to Drill for Natural Gas: A Public Health Cautionary Tale.” American Journal of Public Health 101.5 (2011): 784-89. Academic Search Premier. Web. 15 April 2011. Gasland. Dir. Josh Fox. HBO Documentary Films, 2010. DVD Hall, Keith B. “Hydraulic Fracturing: What are the 3 Big Benefits?” Oil & Gas Law Brief. Stone Pigman Walther Wittmann, 01 April 2011. Web. 16 April 2012. <http://www.oilgaslawbrief.com/hydraulic-fracturing/hydraulic-fracturing-what-are-the-3-big-benefits/>. Mooney, Chris. “The Truth About Fracking.” Scientific American 305.5 (2011): 80-85. Academic Search Premier. Web. 15 April 2012. Noomen, Marleen F., et al. “Continuum Removed Band Depth Analysis for Detecting the Effects of Natural Gas, Methane, and Ethane on Maize Reflectance.” Remote Sensing of Environment 105.3 (2006): 262-70. ScienceDirect. Web. 15 April 2012. Sulzberger, A. G. “Oil Rigs Bring Camps of Men to the Prairie.” The New York Times. 26 Nov. 2011. Web. 14 April 2012. <http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/26/us/north-dakota-oil-boom-creates-camps-of-men.html?pagewanted=all>