Fracking comes to your town: frack you

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Evil corporate oil giants, environmental decimation and the corruption of innocence … sounds like the plot of a Hollywood blockbuster. Right?

Wrong. It’s actually the newest “answer” to the oil crisis called Fracking and it’s coming to a town near you — if it hasn’t already.

Fracking, A.K.A. hydraulic fracturing, is currently doing more damage to the environment and California citizens than oil drilling ever did. We’re talking earthquakes, flammable tap water, asthma, in addition to excessive water waste and groundwater contamination.

Here’s how it works:  A 10,000 foot hole is drilled in the ground to create a well, just like oil drilling. After which, a solution of water and roughly 600 delightful additives like mercury, lead, uranium, ethylene glycol, radium, methanol, hydrochloric acid, formaldehyde, etc., are pumped at high pressures down the well. All of this just to fracture a layer of shale rock that releases natural gas that is then used to power homes.

The chemical-laden wastewater is then extracted and either pumped back into “spent” wells for permanent storage or driven and ferried across rivers to other “safe storage locations.” However, very few of those exist because most sewage treatment plants won’t touch the stuff — it’s far too poisonous.

Here’s another problem, only 30-50 percent of the contaminated water is recovered after a well is fracked and a well can be fracked 18 times. The rest of the wastewater, 50-70 percent, remains in the well where it leaks into community groundwater, contaminating it.

There are 500,000 active gas wells across the U.S. already, so chances are, there’s one in your town. This epidemic is spinning out of control. Corporate greed is literally poisoning every well in North America, including Canada. Check out HBO’s Gasland, for more visceral details.

There are literally no upsides to the process, in a state like California. With sensitive fault lines, drilling is actually causing earthquakes. Which has the residents of towns like Baldwin Hills and Whittier Hills up in arms. Why take the risk with so many renewable solar, wind and hydropower sources available?

With so many negative side effects, how can fracking continue right under our noses? Simple, the oil giants like Matrix Oil think civilians are stupid. So “unsophisticated” that they cannot begin to understand the 1,000 page EPA report on the effects of fracking.

Prove those greedy fat cats wrong and stand up for yourself and your town because our future depends on it. Find out which politicians support fracking and vote against them HERE.

Attend town meetings and get involved with petition websites like Change.org. It takes just seconds to make a difference.

Protect your groundwater, to frack is whack and now it’s time to fight back.

Chad Zachary Mulchin

A native Texan, now a Venice local, covering worthy news and entertainment in Los Angeles. His music column can be viewed at http://www.wehoville.com/author/chad-zachary-mulchin/.