Monday, May 23, 2016

Sand Mines ??? Not In My Backyard !!!

Here is a great op-ed about another destructive aspect of fracking - mining for fracking sand:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/23/opinion/the-sand-mines-that-ruin-farmland.html

In a former life I reviewed air pollution permits for fracking sand facilities, so I am fairly familiar with them. I would not want a sand mine, sand storage/distribution facility, or anything else related to fracking in my back yard. I wouldn't want a concrete batch plant or a rock crusher back there, either.

Drilling for black gold and fracking for gas is much like mining for yellow gold. A few people make a lot of money, while the majority of us then suffer the consequences from the drilling waste and fracking chemicals and the cyanide and mercury used in gold extraction which ultimate destroy our drinking water supplies. You can see a presentation about gold mining in Colombia and its deleterious effects here:

https://news.vice.com/video/poisoned-by-the-gold-rush

Our lust for energy riches is foolish, and we shall one day pay the true price for it.

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