Gasland

gasland part 1

Uploaded by StopThePoisoning on
Feb 22, 2011
Some key points from the Film Gasland by Josh Fox.

gasland part 2

Uploaded by mrchrisprince11 on Nov 26, 2011

Intro: This is a short survey about some important national issues. We appreciate your participation. If you’re not a registered voter, please hang up now.

Public Policy Polling, 1000 registered voters, MoE ±3.1%, March 22, 2012 - March 25, 2012.

Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of Barack Obama?

	Favorable	Unfavorable	Not sure
All	49	45	6
Women	52	42	5
Men	47	47	6
Democrat	82	13	5
Republican	16	81	3
Independent/Other	44	46	9
Liberal	87	11	2
Moderate	60	32	8
Conservative	19	76	5
White	43	52	5
African-American	79	16	5
Asian	52	35	13
Hispanic	65	26	9
American Indian	35	59	6
Federal Tribe	45	55	0
Not Federal Tribe	32	60	8
Other	71	28	2
Tea Party	10	87	3
Non Tea Party	75	19	6
Not sure	29	62	9
Union household	51	41	8
Non-union household	49	46	5
18 to 29	63	29	8
30 to 45	43	49	8
46 to 65	48	47	4
Older than 65	50	47	3
Northeast	57	37	5
Midwest	50	45	5
South	42	51	7
West	50	45	5
Less than $30,000	45	45	10
$30,000 to $50,000	48	48	4
$50,000 to $75,000	54	41	5
$75,000 to $100,000	48	49	3
Over $100,000	55	40	5
Declined to Answer	42	49	8

Do you approve or disapprove of Barack Obama’s job performance?

	Approve	Disapprove	Not sure
All	46	49	5
Women	47	47	6
Men	46	51	4
Democrat	78	16	6
Republican	12	86	1
Independent/Other	42	50	8
Liberal	86	12	2
Moderate	56	35	9
Conservative	16	83	1
White	40	55	4
African-American	74	21	5
Asian	52	40	8
Hispanic	58	32	9
American Indian	32	61	6
Federal Tribe	33	67	0
Not Federal Tribe	32	60	8
Other	72	26	2
Tea Party	5	92	3
Non Tea Party	73	22	5
Not sure	26	66	8
Union household	50	45	4
Non-union household	45	50	5
18 to 29	58	38	4
30 to 45	43	53	5
46 to 65	45	50	5
Older than 65	46	49	5
Northeast	54	40	6
Midwest	44	51	5
South	41	55	4
West	48	49	3
Less than $30,000	40	53	8
$30,000 to $50,000	44	52	4
$50,000 to $75,000	51	43	6
$75,000 to $100,000	47	51	2
Over $100,000	53	44	3
Declined to Answer	41	53	6

Do you think Barack Obama is too liberal, too conservative, or about right?

	Too liberal	Too conservative	About right	Not sure
All	44	9	43	4
Women	42	8	46	4
Men	45	11	40	4
Democrat	15	13	71	2
Republican	77	7	12	5
Independent/Other	45	7	40	8
Liberal	11	18	66	4
Moderate	30	7	57	6
Conservative	76	7	15	2
White	49	9	37	5
African-American	18	6	72	4
Asian	40	16	35	10
Hispanic	30	12	57	1
American Indian	42	18	35	5
Federal Tribe	13	55	33	0
Not Federal Tribe	49	10	35	6
Other	36	2	60	2
Tea Party	86	4	4	6
Non Tea Party	18	14	66	3
Not sure	58	2	33	7
Union household	42	10	44	4
Non-union household	44	9	42	4
18 to 29	31	19	44	6
30 to 45	46	11	38	5
46 to 65	47	6	44	3
Older than 65	44	6	45	5
Northeast	36	11	48	5
Midwest	44	13	40	2
South	50	5	39	6
West	44	7	45	4
Less than $30,000	46	11	36	7
$30,000 to $50,000	43	13	38	6
$50,000 to $75,000	42	9	47	3
$75,000 to $100,000	46	7	45	2
Over $100,000	36	8	52	4
Declined to Answer	55	6	35	4

Do you approve or disapprove of the job Harry Reid is doing?

	Approve	Disapprove	Not sure
All	23	47	30
Women	22	39	40
Men	24	54	22
Democrat	37	25	38
Republican	6	70	24
Independent/Other	24	49	27
Liberal	45	19	36
Moderate	26	38	36
Conservative	9	70	22
White	20	50	29
African-American	38	26	36
Asian	26	41	33
Hispanic	24	45	31
American Indian	9	42	49
Federal Tribe	45	55	0
Not Federal Tribe	0	39	61
Other	39	40	21
Tea Party	5	78	18
Non Tea Party	37	29	34
Not sure	3	51	46
Union household	25	48	27
Non-union household	22	46	31
18 to 29	29	42	29
30 to 45	19	49	32
46 to 65	22	48	30
Older than 65	24	45	30
Northeast	24	40	36
Midwest	19	50	32
South	24	50	26
West	26	46	28
Less than $30,000	17	45	38
$30,000 to $50,000	25	48	28
$50,000 to $75,000	24	43	33
$75,000 to $100,000	19	50	31
Over $100,000	31	42	26
Declined to Answer	16	56	27

Do you approve or disapprove of the job Mitch McConnell is doing?

	Approve	Disapprove	Not sure
All	18	44	38
Women	15	38	47
Men	20	50	30
Democrat	9	50	41
Republican	28	32	40
Independent/Other	17	52	32
Liberal	7	52	41
Moderate	12	48	39
Conservative	28	36	36
White	18	43	39
African-American	16	44	40
Asian	19	35	46
Hispanic	8	58	35
American Indian	27	34	39
Federal Tribe	13	87	0
Not Federal Tribe	31	21	48
Other	33	42	25
Tea Party	34	33	33
Non Tea Party	10	54	36
Not sure	9	26	64
Union household	19	46	35
Non-union household	17	44	39
18 to 29	13	54	33
30 to 45	15	40	45
46 to 65	18	43	39
Older than 65	23	44	33
Northeast	16	46	38
Midwest	13	46	41
South	21	44	34
West	20	38	42
Less than $30,000	22	32	46
$30,000 to $50,000	18	47	34
$50,000 to $75,000	13	51	36
$75,000 to $100,000	21	43	35
Over $100,000	17	44	40
Declined to Answer	12	47	41

Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the Democratic Party?

	Favorable	Unfavorable	Not sure
All	45	47	7
Women	48	44	8
Men	43	50	7
Democrat	84	11	5
Republican	10	85	5
Independent/Other	32	53	15
Liberal	82	11	7
Moderate	55	35	10
Conservative	16	79	4
White	40	54	6
African-American	74	16	10
Asian	48	40	13
Hispanic	54	37	9
American Indian	39	51	10
Federal Tribe	13	67	20
Not Federal Tribe	45	47	8
Other	69	21	9
Tea Party	8	88	3
Non Tea Party	70	22	8
Not sure	22	64	14
Union household	56	35	9
Non-union household	43	51	7
18 to 29	58	38	4
30 to 45	42	52	6
46 to 65	43	47	10
Older than 65	46	49	6
Northeast	49	41	10
Midwest	46	45	9
South	42	53	5
West	45	50	5
Less than $30,000	41	48	11
$30,000 to $50,000	45	48	7
$50,000 to $75,000	54	40	7
$75,000 to $100,000	44	53	3
Over $100,000	49	44	7
Declined to Answer	34	56	10

Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of the Republican Party?

	Favorable	Unfavorable	Not sure
All	31	55	14
Women	34	54	13
Men	29	56	15
Democrat	11	82	6
Republican	61	20	19
Independent/Other	21	59	20
Liberal	10	84	6
Moderate	23	63	14
Conservative	51	31	18
White	36	50	14
African-American	12	71	17
Asian	19	49	32
Hispanic	25	71	4
American Indian	27	66	6
Federal Tribe	0	100	0
Not Federal Tribe	34	58	8
Other	19	65	16
Tea Party	63	20	17
Non Tea Party	13	78	8
Not sure	36	31	34
Union household	25	57	18
Non-union household	33	54	13
18 to 29	37	58	6
30 to 45	30	49	21
46 to 65	28	58	14
Older than 65	36	53	11
Northeast	25	57	18
Midwest	28	56	16
South	40	50	10
West	31	57	12
Less than $30,000	38	47	14
$30,000 to $50,000	33	53	14
$50,000 to $75,000	24	60	16
$75,000 to $100,000	33	51	16
Over $100,000	25	63	12
Declined to Answer	38	50	12

Generally speaking, if there was an election today, would you vote to re-elect Barack Obama, or would you vote for his Republican opponent?

	Barack Obama	Republican opponent	Not sure
All	48	46	7
Women	51	44	6
Men	45	47	8
Democrat	84	12	4
Republican	11	86	3
Independent/Other	41	42	17
Liberal	86	9	5
Moderate	58	34	8
Conservative	17	77	6
White	42	51	7
African-American	80	19	2
Asian	52	43	5
Hispanic	53	32	15
American Indian	36	53	11
Federal Tribe	33	13	55
Not Federal Tribe	37	63	0
Other	72	25	3
Tea Party	5	90	5
Non Tea Party	75	18	6
Not sure	28	61	12
Union household	52	43	5
Non-union household	47	46	7
18 to 29	56	37	8
30 to 45	43	49	8
46 to 65	48	46	6
Older than 65	48	47	5
Northeast	56	37	7
Midwest	47	47	6
South	41	51	8
West	49	47	4
Less than $30,000	48	45	7
$30,000 to $50,000	44	52	5
$50,000 to $75,000	52	40	8
$75,000 to $100,000	45	48	7
Over $100,000	55	40	5
Declined to Answer	41	50	9

Are you very excited, somewhat excited, or not at all excited about voting in the 2012 elections?

	Very excited	Somewhat excited	Not at all excited
All	50	28	22
Women	49	28	23
Men	50	28	22
Democrat	57	28	15
Republican	46	30	24
Independent/Other	43	25	32
Liberal	58	24	18
Moderate	43	31	26
Conservative	52	26	21
White	47	31	22
African-American	70	12	18
Asian	54	16	31
Hispanic	55	18	27
American Indian	53	29	18
Federal Tribe	33	55	13
Not Federal Tribe	58	23	19
Other	38	33	29
Tea Party	55	24	22
Non Tea Party	50	31	20
Not sure	37	27	37
Union household	51	24	25
Non-union household	49	29	22
18 to 29	58	27	15
30 to 45	40	28	32
46 to 65	51	28	21
Older than 65	53	29	18
Northeast	47	27	27
Midwest	48	31	21
South	53	25	22
West	50	30	20
Less than $30,000	53	23	25
$30,000 to $50,000	49	30	22
$50,000 to $75,000	51	27	22
$75,000 to $100,000	49	29	21
Over $100,000	48	31	21
Declined to Answer	46	28	26

If passed into law, one version of immigration reform that people have discussed would secure the border and crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants. It would also require illegal immigrants to register for legal immigration status, pay back taxes, and learn English in order to be eligible for U.S. citizenship. Do you favor or oppose Congress passing this version of immigration reform?

	Favor	Oppose	Not sure
All	66	20	14
Women	68	16	16
Men	65	24	11
Democrat	56	29	15
Republican	78	12	10
Independent/Other	66	18	16
Liberal	42	42	16
Moderate	65	18	17
Conservative	79	12	9
White	67	21	12
African-American	68	13	19
Asian	70	26	5
Hispanic	59	22	20
American Indian	70	23	6
Federal Tribe	33	67	0
Not Federal Tribe	79	13	8
Other	58	18	24
Tea Party	80	12	8
Non Tea Party	57	27	15
Not sure	71	10	19
Union household	72	19	9
Non-union household	64	21	15
18 to 29	54	37	10
30 to 45	65	21	14
46 to 65	71	16	12
Older than 65	66	15	19
Northeast	68	23	9
Midwest	63	20	17
South	68	18	13
West	64	22	15
Less than $30,000	67	19	14
$30,000 to $50,000	72	17	11
$50,000 to $75,000	67	20	13
$75,000 to $100,000	63	21	16
Over $100,000	58	27	15
Declined to Answer	70	18	12

Who do you trust more to protect Social Security: Barack Obama or Congressional Republicans?

	Barack Obama	Congressional Republicans	Trust both equally	Not sure
All	47	40	5	7
Women	49	41	5	5
Men	46	40	6	8
Democrat	80	12	4	4
Republican	11	78	4	7
Independent/Other	46	35	9	11
Liberal	84	9	5	1
Moderate	57	27	6	9
Conservative	18	71	4	7
White	41	45	6	8
African-American	80	16	2	1
Asian	44	50	3	3
Hispanic	66	26	5	2
American Indian	36	61	0	2
Federal Tribe	33	67	0	-
Not Federal Tribe	37	60	3	-
Other	59	24	6	10
Tea Party	7	82	5	7
Non Tea Party	75	16	4	6
Not sure	22	52	13	13
Union household	53	37	4	6
Non-union household	46	41	6	7
18 to 29	52	37	8	4
30 to 45	44	42	6	8
46 to 65	48	41	4	8
Older than 65	48	42	5	6
Northeast	55	31	5	9
Midwest	48	40	5	8
South	41	49	5	5
West	46	42	7	5
Less than $30,000	45	44	5	6
$30,000 to $50,000	44	45	6	5
$50,000 to $75,000	55	36	3	6
$75,000 to $100,000	47	41	6	7
Over $100,000	53	36	5	6
Declined to Answer	36	43	7	14

Who do you trust more to protect Medicare: Barack Obama or Congressional Republicans?

	Barack Obama	Congressional Republicans	Trust both equally	Not sure
All	48	40	4	7
Women	50	42	3	5
Men	47	39	5	9
Democrat	81	12	2	5
Republican	13	76	5	6
Independent/Other	44	37	8	11
Liberal	85	8	1	6
Moderate	58	28	5	9
Conservative	19	70	6	5
White	43	45	5	8
African-American	76	19	1	4
Asian	52	32	3	13
Hispanic	67	26	5	2
American Indian	36	48	11	5
Federal Tribe	33	67	0	0
Not Federal Tribe	37	43	13	6
Other	54	30	6	9
Tea Party	7	81	5	7
Non Tea Party	77	15	2	6
Not sure	19	55	12	13
Union household	51	38	4	7
Non-union household	48	41	4	7
18 to 29	58	35	4	4
30 to 45	42	42	6	10
46 to 65	48	40	4	7
Older than 65	50	43	3	4
Northeast	55	32	4	10
Midwest	50	40	4	6
South	43	48	6	4
West	46	41	4	10
Less than $30,000	44	45	6	5
$30,000 to $50,000	44	44	5	7
$50,000 to $75,000	55	33	4	7
$75,000 to $100,000	47	40	4	9
Over $100,000	55	35	4	6
Declined to Answer	42	46	3	8

Who do you think is the most extreme Republican candidate for President: Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, or do you think none of the candidates are extreme?

	Newt Gingrich	Ron Paul	Mitt Romney	Rick Santorum	Don't think any of the candidates are extreme	Not sure
All	15	25	11	27	17	4
Women	15	23	11	28	18	5
Men	15	27	12	26	17	4
Democrat	19	12	13	36	15	5
Republican	11	39	13	14	20	3
Independent/Other	14	28	6	30	18	4
Liberal	15	10	10	47	11	6
Moderate	17	22	13	33	10	4
Conservative	12	36	10	10	28	4
White	14	27	10	28	17	4
African-American	19	15	19	13	26	8
Asian	19	29	16	32	0	5
Hispanic	13	23	11	32	21	1
American Indian	17	26	6	17	26	7
Federal Tribe	0	20	13	13	55	0
Not Federal Tribe	21	27	5	18	19	9
Other	21	18	14	42	4	0
Tea Party	13	45	7	8	24	4
Non Tea Party	16	15	12	40	12	5
Not sure	16	22	19	13	27	3
Union household	17	26	14	22	17	5
Non-union household	14	25	11	28	18	4
18 to 29	19	19	15	29	13	4
30 to 45	12	30	7	25	22	4
46 to 65	16	26	11	28	15	3
Older than 65	14	22	14	25	18	8
Northeast	14	22	11	28	19	6
Midwest	14	27	10	28	18	4
South	15	24	13	25	20	4
West	19	29	11	27	10	4
Less than $30,000	14	18	16	16	30	6
$30,000 to $50,000	14	29	16	18	20	4
$50,000 to $75,000	13	22	9	38	15	4
$75,000 to $100,000	21	27	6	33	12	1
Over $100,000	16	25	9	35	11	3
Declined to Answer	13	33	12	17	15	10

Demographics

Women	480	48
Men	520	52
Democrat	410	41
Republican	350	35
Independent/Other	240	24
Liberal	190	19
Moderate	420	42
Conservative	380	38
White	740	74
African-American	100	10
Asian	20	2
Hispanic	80	8
American Indian	20	2
Federal Tribe	4	0.4
Not Federal Tribe	17	1.7
Other	40	4
Tea Party	310	31
Non Tea Party	570	57
Not sure	120	12
Union household	210	21
Non-union household	790	79
18 to 29	150	15
30 to 45	250	25
46 to 65	400	40
Older than 65	200	20
Northeast	260	26
Midwest	270	27
South	300	30
West	160	16
Less than $30,000	170	17
$30,000 to $50,000	210	21
$50,000 to $75,000	200	20
$75,000 to $100,000	150	15
Over $100,000	170	17
Declined to Answer	100	10

Closing: This survey has been conducted by Public Policy Polling. For more information visit publicpolicypolling.com. Thank you for your participation.

Questions

Zip file of raw poll data

  Polling methodology

'Rats' redux? Santorum campaign ad appears to link Obama with Ahmadinejad

3

days

ago

By M. Alex Johnson, msnbc.com

Rick Santorum's presidential campaign appears to have released a new video that subliminally links President Barack Obama with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

The video, titled "Obamaville," is a 65-second-long production that presents bleak images of an America in dire economic and social straits, interspersed with scenes of international unrest. Prominent among those is a segment showing images of protests and violence in Iran, featuring pictures of Ahmadinejad. It doesn't include the mandatory "I'm Rick Santorum and I approved this message" tagline that would be necessary if it were intended to air on television.
The video was posted Friday on the Santorum campaign's YouTube page, where it was marked as "unlisted," meaning you can't access it without a special link. But you should still be able to see it on a Twitter account identified as belonging to Michael Biundo, Santorum's campaign manager.
Biundo didn't respond to a request for comment Friday night.

---

‘Obamaville’

By Robert Costa

March 23, 2012 3:18 P.M.

National Review Online gets a first look at Rick Santorum’s latest ad:

The ad also was published by National Review Online, which touted it as an exclusive "first look at Rick Santorum's latest ad."
At the 40-second mark, an image of Ahmadinejad is shown on a small TV screen. For less than a half-second, the picture flashes to a similarly framed picture of Obama before returning to the Iranian dictator.
At full speed, it looks like a tiny video glitch or small lightning strike, but if you slow down the video, the image of Obama is clear in individual frames:

Reached by NBC News on Friday night, Hogan Gidley, a Santorum spokesman, said it is "absurd" to think the ad is likening Obama to Ahmadinejad.
"If Ahmadinejad gets a nuclear weapon, then we're obviously going to deal with the fallout and coverage of that," Gidley said. "All we're going to be seeing is images of him and the president. We were trying to illustrate that."
And Politico reported that John Brabender, the media consultant who made the video, also denied there was an attempt to conflate Obama and Ahmadinejad. Brabender told Politico that the video is part of an eight-part web series that will run on the Santorum website in two weeks focusing on specific Obama policies.
The ad in some ways is reminiscent of one produced by the Republican National Committee for George W. Bush in 2000, in which the word "RATS" briefly appeared on the screen in a reference to Al Gore's health care proposals before resolving into the word "BUREAUCRATS" at the 25-second mark.
Here are the frames in question:

YouTube.com

That ad was pulled after Democrats complained that it was a subliminal insult about Gore, a charge that the RNC and the Bush campaign denied.
NBC News' Andrew Rafferty contributed to this report.

Santorum tells reporters: Romney is spinning you

3

days

ago

By NBC News' Andrew Rafferty

SHREVEPORT, La. -- Reporters asking Rick Santorum about the latest in a week's worth of controversial comments got a tongue lashing on Friday from the Republican presidential candidate, who accused the media of eating up the spin from rival Mitt Romney.
Speaking to reporters after firing off rounds at a shooting range in West Monroe, La., Santorum told reporters to "do some reporting instead of just reporting what Gov. Romney feeds you."  The remarks came in response to a question about comments the former Pennsylvania senator made Thursday when, referring to Romney, he said, "If you’re going to be a little different, we might as well stay with what we have." Romney's team of advisers jumped on that line, portraying Santorum as someone who favors four more years of President Obama over a GOP nominee that is not him.

---

Pressed about the comment on Friday, Santorum said, “I didn’t say that, I mean look, how many times have you guys heard me say this, that we have to have a clear choice ... what I was saying is, if we don’t have a choice then a lot of voters are going to vote for what they have."
The GOP hopeful has spent this week responding to and clarifying a series of forced and unforced errors. It began Sunday when Santorum attended a church service in Baton Rouge, La., where the pastor who introduced him suggested that those who do not believe in Jesus should leave the country. Santorum clarified that he does not share the pastor's views, but from there, his week did not get any easier.
On Monday, Santorum provided fodder for Romney with the comment "I don't care what the unemployment rate's going to be. Doesn't matter to me."
The point, he later explained, was that his campaign is based on more fundamental issues than the current jobless numbers. That did not stop the Romney campaign from blasting out emails with the quote and the former Massachusetts governor from using it on the stump.
And Friday, as media filmed Santorum firing a hand gun at a paper target with a human silhouette, a supporter drew chuckles by yelling, "Pretend it's Obama."
"It's a very terrible and horrible remark, and I'm glad I didn't hear it," Santorum said when asked about the comment, and there was visible frustration from Santorum and his staff about being forced to address yet another comment that didn't come out of the candidate's mouth.


The damage control comes in a week in which Santorum earned no delegates from the Puerto Rican primary and suffered a double-digit percentage-point loss in Illinois.
The distractions impeded Santorum's ability to hit the Romney campaign after a top adviser used the now infamous Etch a Sketch line, suggesting they could erase the policy positions their candidate has been trumpeting in the primary and start over in the general election.
Stumping in the Pelican State the day before the primary, Santorum focused even more attention and fiery rhetoric on Romney than usual.


"Now he's running again, as a conservative," he said in Shreveport while shaking an Etch a Sketch. "Now he's for all those things that all those that are voting in Republican primaries want to hear. How many of you believe that that's what he'll stay with?"
But Romney's closest contender remained confident that his luck could soon change in Louisiana, where polls have him with a commanding lead ahead of Saturday's primary. And Santorum remains confident that he will be in the race through the summer conventions.
"I feel very confident that the folks showing up in Tampa are going to be folks who are conservatives and want the choice not someone who doesn't provide any contrasts to President Obama on the biggest issues," he said.

3

days

ago

Santorum denounces woman's comment at gun range

By NBC's Andrew Rafferty and msnbc.com's Michael O'Brien

WEST MONROE, LA -- Rick Santorum denounced a comment Friday made, unbeknownst to him, by a woman who said that Santorum, while taking shooting practice, should pretend the targets were President Obama.
While the presidential contender was down field, taking aim at paper targets, a woman in the crowd could be heard shouting out "pretend it's Obama." The remark drew scattered chuckles from the assembled crowd.
Santorum himself did not hear the remark, but denounced it upon being informed of it; he was wearing headphones and was considerably down range when the comment was made.
"It's absurd. No I'm not pretending it's anybody but shooting pistols. It's a very terrible and horrible remark and I'm glad I didn't hear it."
The U.S. Secret Service told reporters they would look into it

Hydraulic Fracturing FAQs

Fracking Process

How does hydraulic fracturing work?

Hydraulic fracturing or fracking is a means of natural gas extraction employed in deep natural gas well drilling. Once a well is drilled, millions of gallons of water, sand and proprietary chemicals are injected, under high pressure, into a well. The pressure fractures the shale and props open fissures that enable natural gas to flow more freely out of the well.

What is horizontal hydraulic fracturing?

Horizontal hydrofracking is a means of tapping shale deposits containing natural gas that were previously inaccessible by conventional drilling. Vertical hydrofracking is used to extend the life of an existing well once its productivity starts to run out, sort of a last resort. Horizontal fracking differs in that it uses a mixture of 596 chemicals, many of them proprietary, and millions of gallons of water per frack. This water then becomes contaminated and must be cleaned and disposed of.

What is the Halliburton Loophole?

In 2005, the Bush/ Cheney Energy Bill exempted natural gas drilling from the Safe Drinking Water Act. It exempts companies from disclosing the chemicals used during hydraulic fracturing. Essentially, the provision took the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) off the job. It is now commonly referred to as the Halliburton Loophole.

What is the Safe Drinking Water Act?

In 1974, the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) was passed by Congress to ensure clean drinking water free from both natural and man-made contaminates.

What is the FRAC Act?

The FRAC Act (Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness to Chemical Act) is a House bill intended to repeal the Halliburton Loophole and to require the natural gas industry to disclose the chemicals they use.

How deep do natural gas wells go?

The average well is up to 8,000 feet deep. The depth of drinking water aquifers is about 1,000 feet. The problems typically stem from poor cement well casings that leak natural gas as well as fracking fluid into water wells.

How much water is used during the fracking process?

Generally 1-8 million gallons of water may be used to frack a well. A well may be fracked up to 18 times.

What fluids are used in the fracking process?

For each frack, 80-300 tons of chemicals may be used. Presently, the natural gas industry does not have to disclose the chemicals used, but scientists have identified volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene.

In what form does the natural gas come out of the well?

The gas comes up wet in produced water and has to be separated from the wastewater on the surface. Only 30-50% of the water is typically recovered from a well. This wastewater can be highly toxic.

What is done with the wastewater?

Evaporators evaporate off VOCs and condensate tanks steam off VOCs, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The wastewater is then trucked to water treatment facilities.

What is a well's potential to cause air pollution?

As the VOCs are evaporated and come into contact with diesel exhaust from trucks and generators at the well site, ground level ozone is produced. Ozone plumes can travel up to 250 miles.