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Environment Ohio Releases 'Fracking by the Numbers'
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- A new report from an advocacy group, the Environment Ohio Research & Policy Center, concludes Ohio drilling operations are producing 30 million gallons of wastewater each year -- "enough to flood the Ohio statehouse under 90 feet of toxic waste," the group says.
The report, "Fracking by the Numbers," is said by Environment Ohio to be "the first of its kind" to measure the footprint of fracking in Ohio to date.
“The numbers don't lie -- fracking has taken a dirty and destructive toll on our environment. If fracking continues unchecked, these numbers will only get worse,” said Christian Adams from Environment Ohio. “Wastewater is flooding our state -- and over half of it is coming from wells in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Ohio should not be a regional dumping ground for toxic wastewater.”
Vanessa Pesec, president of the Network for Oil & Gas Accountability and Protection backed up the reports data. “This waste is not going away. Gas companies are injecting it underground, dumping it in landfills and processing it in local sewage treatment facilities -- contaminating drinking water in the process,” Pesec said in a statement. “With over 500 million gallons of toxic waste and rising, we’re just seeing the tip of the iceberg on the health threats of fracking here in Ohio.”
In addition, the “Fracking by the Numbers” report measured what it termed other key indicators of fracking threats in Ohio, "including 4,600 tons of air pollution produced in 2012, and since 2005, 1.4 billion gallons of fresh water used, 1,600 acres of land degraded, and 420,000 tons of global warming pollution."
Environment Ohio held a press event Thursday to release its findings. Its full report can be downloaded here. The advocacy group describes itself as a "citizen-supported, environmental advocacy organization, working towards a cleaner, greener, healthier future."
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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