Raising health and air quality concerns in Texas’ fracking frontier
Synopsis
As shale and natural gas fracking booms in South Texas, a new report raises unsettling concerns about possible related health risks and poor air quality. The Center for Public Integrity collaborated with others in examining nearly 300 complaints filed by residents. Jim Morris, a journalist who contributed to the report, joins Judy Woodruff to detail the findings and respond to the industry’s rejection.
Source: PBS NewsHour
Length: 5:14
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Watch the video and answer the following questions:
The speaker, Jim Morris, is a consultant hired by various fracking companies and was interviewed in order to lessen public concern over potential health issues associated with hydraulic fracking practices.
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The “Eagle Ford Shale” is a large area of Texas that has rich underground deposits of natural gas and shale oil. It is currently
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Fracking is a drilling technology used to extract
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A number of toxic chemicals, which appear to create a variety human sickness and are used during fracking for fossil fuels, are potentially released during the
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Jim Morris, a journalist who contributed to the report, suggested that there is likely a strong correlation between the presence of chemicals used in hydrofracking (such as benzene), and human disease (such as leukemia). However, he makes the point that proving that residents near fracking sites are more likely to develop a lethal disease is difficult in part because:
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Watch the video and answer the following questions:
Jim Morris (who was interviewed from the Center for Public Integrity), and a statement from the Spokesperson for Energy in Depth (a research program with the Independent Petroleum Association of America), expressed very different conclusions when addressing potential consequences of hydraulic fracturing. What would you want to know about each of these two entities in order for you to form your own opinion as to who is closer to telling the truth? How, or from where, would you obtain information that would help you draw your own conclusions as to who is relaying a more factual story, either with this case study in particular or other current environmental stories?
A Spokesman for Energy in Depth, a research program with the Independent Petroleum Association of America, stated that “…tens of thousands of families in the Eagle Ford (drilling area) are living better lives today because of oil and gas development.” By “living better lives” the Spokesman is most likely referring to the increased economic development of the area, such as the creation of jobs and increased tax base. What are several consequences of fracking that very likely decrease the quality of life for families living near the Eagle Ford area? Are these negative consequences measured in dollar amounts or quantified in other ways?
While this interview focused on the relationship between human health and hydraulic fracking, your text also addresses other, non-human health, threats associated with fracking. List several negative environmental concerns linked to on-going hydraulic fracking practices.
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