What's the price tag on dirty drilling?
Since 2005, oil and gas companies have produced 239 billion gallons of wastewater, damaged at least 679,000 acres of public land, and exposed the public to toxic chemicals — regulators have confirmed at least 260 instances of private well contamination in Pennsylvania alone. It all adds up to a hefty tab that the fracking industry has left for communities and taxpayers to pick up.
Depleting Clean Water
Fracking threatens farmers and local communities by jacking up water prices, particularly in arid states, and risking drinking water contamination.
In 2012, oil and gas companies in Colorado paid up to $3,300 for an acre-foot of water, a staggering increase from the previous rate paid by farmers and ranchers of $30 to $100. And clean up after compromised wells and wastewater pools contaminate drinking water, is so expensive that it is rarely even attempted.
Risking Public Health
The financial impact of ozone smog caused by fracking on public health has been estimated at $1,648 per ton of nitrous oxide (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
In the Dallas-Fort Worth region, the average public health cost amounts to more than $270,000 per day during the summer, while in Arkansas, the nearly 6,000 tons of NOx and VOCs emitted in 2008 would impose an annual public health cost of roughly $9.8 million.
Harming Natural Resources
Fracking converts rural and natural areas into industrial zones, replacing forest and farm land with well pads, roads, pipelines and other infrastructure, and damaging precious natural resources.
In Texas, there are nearly 10,000 orphaned wells, and the state has spent more than $230 million on plugging them. In Wyoming, non-resident hunters and wildlife watchers pumped $340 million into the state’s economy in 2006. But fracking has degraded the habitat of species that are important attractions, like the mule deer population, which dropped 56% between 2001 and 2010 as fracking has accelerated.
Damaging Infrastructure and Property Values
A 2010 study in Texas concluded that houses valued at more than $250,000 and within 1,000 feet of a well site saw values decrease by 3 to 14 percent, and in 2012, the state approved $40 million in funding for road repairs in the Barnett Shale region.
Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, it was estimated in 2010 that $265 million would be needed to repair damaged roads in the Marcellus Shale region. A more recent study found that Pennsylvania homes depending on private groundwater lost an average of $33,214 in value when a well was drilled within nine-tenths of a mile.
Broader Economic Impacts
Fracking can undercut the long-term economic prospects of areas where it takes place, harming worker productivity and whole industries like farming, real estate, and tourism.
A 2008 study found that Western countries that have relied on fossil fuel extraction are doing worse economically compared with peer communities and are less well prepared for growth in the future. And because the costs of fracking are diffuse, regional, and difficult to litigate, many of them will be borne by nearby residents, taxpayers, and future generations.
