Is Our Water Supply in Jeopardy?

Is Our Water Supply in Jeopardy?

Vice Chairman Gary A. House

Harnett County Board of Commissioners

To Frack or Not to Frack?  That is not the question. 

Governor Pat McCrory recently put his signature on documents fast-tracking hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in North Carolina. We may begin seeing fracking wells as close as Lee County as early as 2015.

Some land in Lee County has extensive layers of shale a few thousand feet under the surface.  Fracking would allow oil companies to shoot water, sand and chemicals into the fracking wells in order to extract natural gas.

Let me set the record straight.  I am for energy independence and finding alternative sources of fuel.  However, I do have some concerns about fracking.

First of all, at the Fracking Forum hosted by NC Senator Ronald Rabin in Angier last night, Lee County Commissioner Jim Womack, who did all of the talking and answered all questions, unintentionally brought to light some problems with fracking that I may not have given proper thought to in my reading on the subject.

What happens to the water and chemicals that are injected into the ground in order to extract the natural gas?  Mr. Womack said that it could be cleaned and reused over and over again.  He did talk about putting  the waste in sewer systems to get rid of it.  There was also mention of holding the water in open water pits instead of contained water tanks. 

With the breaching of the water pits related to the recent spills of coal ash, I have serious concerns about North Carolina allowing water pits to hold the waste of the fracking industry.  Any breach would likely end up in groundwater that people use for wells or would end up in the Deep River.  The confluence of the Deep River and the Haw River form the Cape Fear River near Jordan Lake.  Anyone who knows me knows how deeply I care about the Cape Fear River.  It is Harnett County’s most valuable natural resource and its biggest recreational asset.  Any spills of fracking waste in Lee County could end up affecting Harnett County.

Another concern that Mr. Womack tried to skirt around was the lack of disclosure of chemicals used in the fracking process.  He claimed that the chemicals were a trade secret and were protected just like trade secrets in other industries.  It is protected by the Constitution of the State of North Carolina.

We, the citizens of North Carolina, have a right to know everything that potentially affects our health and well-being.  Mr. Womack said that some of the chemicals could potentially cause cancer in large enough doses.

Mr. Womack claimed in order to get fracking companies to come to North Carolina, we must protect their secrets and we must make it easy for them by letting them have open water pits.

Why has Mr. Womack not fought for full disclosure and enclosed water tanks?  He says that is an issue for the General Assembly.  In my opinion, if he truly cared about the health, safety and welfare of his Lee County constituents and the rest of us downstream, he would be addressing the General Assembly to make sure fracking is as safe as possible and not making it as easy as possible to lure fracking companies to North Carolina.

If North Carolina truly has enough natural gas reserves, the fracking companies will come no matter what restrictions North Carolina puts in place.

When asked a question about the studies performed by Cornell University and an engineer and a leading authority of fracking Dr. Anthony R. Ingraffea, Mr. Womack paused and said with a slight stutter that he was not impressed with the work of Cornell University.  Perhaps the research of Cornell University did not support Mr. Womack’s position on fracking.  Mr. Womack later said we must rely of engineers and geologists.  Perhaps Mr. Womack did not realize Dr. Ingraffea was an engineer.

Mr. Womack claimed fracking does not cause earthquakes.  A simple google on the internet will tell you that earthquakes have occurred in areas of fracking that have not had them in the past.  Seismic activity has increased.  Commonsense will tell you that anytime you fracture shale or rock underground that there will likely be changes of some sort in the geology of the area.

By claiming that North Carolina took two years to write the rules of fracking and we would not have the issues that other states like Texas, Pennsylvania, and Oklahoma have had with fracking, he inadvertently admitted that there are issues with fracking.  Does he expect us to believe that the states that have experienced problems with fracking jumped right into it without having studies and rules in place?  I do not think any of us are that naïve.

NC Senator Rabin hosted the event and answered no questions.  I realize that Senator Rabin is not an authority on the subject of fracking.  But it would have restored some confidence in him if he had answered the questions that he could in order to show that he had the competence to vote on the issue of fracking. 

It should be noted that Representatives David Lewis and Mike Stone, who support fracking, did not bother to show up at the event to support Senator Rabin.

I will get back to the original question.  Is our water supply in jeopardy?  Honestly, I do not think anyone can answer that question with certainty.  I know the potential exists for health, safety, pollution, air, water, cancer, respiratory, spills, and contamination issues among many other risks.

Mr. Womack raised more concerns for me last night than he relieved.

The one thing I know is we must protect our people, our water and our land.   The effects have the potential to be long-term and devastating.