About a month ago the EPA requested the fracking chemicals from 9 Natural Gas drilling companies. These chemicals are a secret concoction that these companies pump into the wells that are going dry; the chemical cocktails contain hundreds of chemicals that are unknown to the public and could be seriously endangering the environment. Gas drilling companies strive to keep these chemicals a secret because they are specially designed to create the right balance of pressure underground and gain the highest amount of gas; if they make this information public any other company can steal their hard work. However, the risk that these chemicals pose to the environment is severe and the Environmental Protection Agency is finally stepping in to try and regulate these companies.
Many companies are furious that the EPA is asking for the chemical list; but one is looking on the bright side. By disclosing the chemicals used in fracking, Ranger Resources Corp. hopes that they will please the EPA and the public and prevent even more regulations on their practices. The public view on hydraulic fracturing is extremely negative and this has a great deal of influence on the government and EPA’s push for regulation. I believe that if these companies are telling the truth and their chemicals are one-hundred percent safe to the environment, they should follow in Ranger Resource Corp.’s footstep and tell the public what they use. It would improve the public view on the practice and the EPA would allow them as much freedom as they once had a few years ago.
I think it’s a great and smart that the Environmental Protection Agency is stepping in and demanding to know what time of chemicals these companies are using. When I linked to the article about the EPA requesting the fracking chemicals, I read how the chemicals can contaminate drinking water. It seems as though this is just one of the serious issues that these chemicals could pose which then raises the question: what else is being harmed? Although I understand that these companies have put in hard work to come up with this special mixture of chemicals and should have exclusive rights, I do agree that it would be beneficial for them to reveal what they are using to reduce the amount of suspicion and negative views, especially in the public sphere. I completely agree that if these chemicals are safe, then why should they try to hide it? I really do believe that it would be advantageous for the companies in the long run to expose these types of chemicals and agree that organizations, such as the EPA, would not scrutinize and question their work to the extent in which they are now. Overall, I enjoyed reading this post as it presents an interesting argument of the topic!
ReplyDeleteI couldn’t agree more, if you have nothing to hide then why complain. I like how the EPA is finally stepping in and asking the right questions to make sure that these fracking companies really have what is best for the masses at heart. I understand the need to keep the chemical mixture secretive and i feel as though this is a reasonable request so there should be some discretion when the companies meet with the EPA. Companies of this magnitude should have little issue reaching a conflict resolution. Companies that dislike or argue with the EPA’s ruling only place suspicion on themselves and validate the reason for the inquiry. We would imagine that with the negative image, these companies would be doing anything possible to try to boost their public appeal. Ranger Resources Corp. has the right idea by embracing this new request from the EPA. They are acknowledging that they have no secrets and nothing to hide thereby giving off the appearance that their company has worked within the proper restrictions and limitations. As for companies that complain about the simple request, I wouldn’t be surprised to discover that they had breached guidelines on usable fracking materials. To me it is almost a certainty that they have.
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