News Is Gasland a Reliable Source on Fracking Issues?

[ThomasT]

It is pathological skepticism against the oil and gas industry ...

I think it's a good idea to be skeptical.
Here's a couple things on this:
NY Times article
Yale e360 discussion with comments

 

[mheslep]

I think it's a good idea to be skeptical.
Here's a couple things on this:
NY Times article

That reporter, Urbina, really can't be trusted on the subject, according to the NY Times itself.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/17/opinion/sunday/17pubed.html?ref=arthursbrisbane

 

[ThomasT]

That reporter, Urbina, really can't be trusted on the subject, according to the NY Times itself.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/17/opinion/sunday/17pubed.html?ref=arthursbrisbane

Thanks for the link. The plot thickens. Figuring out who can and can't be trusted can be a daunting task. Is this emerging as another sort of "global warming" type debate where you've got the obvious vested interests at odds, and a bunch of credentialed scientists in the middle saying different things?

My current take is that the thread topic, Gasland, raised public awareness of what might be an important issue. Is fracking something that should be more closely monitored and regulated by government than it currently is? I don't know. So if there's room for error, then it seems wise to err on the side of caution.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

It's not fracking's fault, study says
http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/02/16/10426765-its-not-frackings-fault-study-says

 

[KingNothing]

What frustrates me is that it's so hard to form a real opinion without being an expert on the subject yourself. I can't trust the filmmakers or their targets, because they all have an agenda and $$ to make.

For what it's worth, I drink Colorado groundwater pretty much daily.

 

[DrClapeyron]

Operators do not want to fracture more than the target formation. If they do then they stand to lose formation pressure, which would lead to a loss in production volume, and a loss in investors. Every bit of logical sense points toward something other than fracking as the cause of methane contamination.

It is more than possible that shoddy casing jobs and dumping of waste water could contaminate wells, or natural causes or people lying about the history and levels of contamination in their water wells. I think people are jumping on the fracking bandwagon because it is a convenient, scary word.

Alternatively, these people could be supporters of coal and view such drilling activities as detrimental to their preferred coal. :)

 

[nicoleannB]

Oil prices are set by commodities traders who buy and sell futures contracts on the commodities exchanges. These are agreements to buy or sell oil at a specific date in the future at a specific price. According to a recent survey, gasoline costs in the U.S. have increased by almost 12 cents a gallon over the past three weeks. The price increase is held accountable, at least in part, on the rising price of crude oil in the North Sea. Those Middle Eastern tensions include threats by Iran to block vital shipping lanes, the higher cost of summer-grade fuel and a decreased refinery capacity. Another factor affecting the hike is increased gasoline consumption in developing nations, such as India and China. Thus, Gas prices will continue to rise. Consumer spending is necessary for the economy to improve and recover.

 

[aquitaine]

What frustrates me is that it's so hard to form a real opinion without being an expert on the subject yourself. I can't trust the filmmakers or their targets, because they all have an agenda and $$ to make.

For what it's worth, I drink Colorado groundwater pretty much daily.

Well this is a science forum, surely there are people here who are experts...


In any case it is unfortunate that energy, despite being critical for civilization, is the most politicized form of engineering there is. That makes it so hard to have real solutions to our problems.

 

[DoggerDan]

In any case it is unfortunate that energy, despite being critical for civilization, is the most politicized form of engineering there is. That makes it so hard to have real solutions to our problems.

Yes, it has been politicized, at all levels, including non-monitored message forums. Energy involves science. These issues should not be politicized. They should be based on science and fact, provided that science passes most of its own accord in the appropriate real-world, objective venues, rather than a couple of twisted minds on some self-acclaimed but far from it "science" forum.

 

[Office_Shredder]

http://m.cbsnews.com/storysynopsis.rbml?catid=57394256&feed_id=0&videofeed=36

Sketchy stuff going on in Ohio