Search Results for: Abrahm Lustgarten

17 results found

WATER | Fracking and the Environment: Natural Gas Drilling, Hydraulic Fracturing and Water Contamination

ProPublica journalist Abrahm Lustgarten reported that federal officials in Wyoming found at least three water wells containing chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing. The investigation brought the groundwater question into sharp focus, linking drilling activity to documented contamination findings. As shale development expanded, water moved to the center of the debate: how much is used, what returns to the surface, and how safely it is managed.

Source: Democracy Now (2010) Read More

Buried Secrets: Is Natural Gas Drilling Endangering U.S. Water Supplies?

Investigative reporter Abrahm Lustgarten examined whether hydraulic fracturing posed risks to underground water supplies long assumed safe. Internal documents, field reports, and federal hesitations suggested a murkier picture than public assurances implied. At stake: aquifers serving millions. The promise of cleaner-burning fuel collided with a quieter question — what happens if the contamination is slow, invisible, and hard to prove?

Source: ProPublica (2008) Read More

Editorial – The risks of fracking | Philadelphia Inquirer

$Editorial – The risks of fracking | Philadelphia Inquirer$

A March 22, 2010 Philadelphia Inquirer editorial noted the Marcellus Shale Coalition’s claim that hydraulic fracturing had never contaminated groundwater, while acknowledging environmental risks and New York’s drilling moratorium. What followed was a pointed public exchange: commenters such as Jim Barth challenged industry timelines, cited EPA whistleblower Westin Wilson and ProPublica’s Abrahm Lustgarten, and questioned chemical disclosure, regulatory exemptions, and cumulative impacts on Pennsylvania watersheds.

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer (2010) Read More

Congress Launches Investigation Into Gas Drilling Practices

Members of Congress initiated investigations into gas drilling practices, requesting documents and testimony related to environmental impacts and regulatory compliance. When congressional oversight activates, the technical mechanics of fracking move into public record.

Source: ProPublica (2010) Read More

Hydraulic Fracturing of Oil and Gas Wells

A nuts-and-bolts explainer of the process: drilling, casing, perforation, high-pressure fluid, sand, and chemical additives — engineered force applied underground to release gas. It’s operational clarity in a debate that often floats above the mechanics. The hook here is not ideology — it’s process: how a well becomes productive, where failures can occur, and why “how it’s done” matters when water, cement, and pressure are the core ingredients.

Source: Earthworks (2010) Read More

Statoil

Norway’s Statoil — majority-owned by the Norwegian state — expanded into U.S. shale during the boom, pairing offshore expertise with unconventional gas plays in formations like the Marcellus and Bakken. Backed by sovereign capital and a global portfolio, the company entered American drilling amid ongoing scientific and regulatory examination of whether the gas extraction method known as hydraulic fracturing — or fracking — poses hazards to groundwater drinking supplies. As development scaled, the groundwater question remained central to public debate.

Source: Statoil – a leading energy company in oil and gas production (2010) Read More

Cabot Oil & Gas’s Marcellus Drilling to Slow After PA Environment Officials Order Wells Closed

Cabot Oil & Gas signaled plans to slow Marcellus drilling activity amid market pressures and regulatory scrutiny. Production decisions reflect more than geology — they respond to commodity prices, infrastructure constraints, and public controversy. Even major operators adjust course when conditions shift.

Source: ProPublica (2010) Read More

U.S. Congress. (2009). A bill to amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to repeal a certain exemption for hydraulic fracturing, and for other purposes

$U.S. Congress. (2009). A bill to amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to repeal a certain exemption for hydraulic fracturing, and for other purposes$

Legislation introduced in Congress sought to amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to remove exemptions shielding hydraulic fracturing from federal oversight. Supporters argued the change would restore transparency and accountability. Industry groups warned of duplication and delay. The bill spotlighted the “Halliburton loophole” in statutory form.

Source: Library of Congress (2009) Read More

Pennsylvania Orders Cabot Oil and Gas to Stop Fracturing in Troubled County – ProPublica

After three chemical spills in nine days, Pennsylvania regulators ordered Cabot Oil and Gas to suspend hydraulic fracturing operations in Susquehanna County pending review. The Department of Environmental Protection cited ongoing environmental concerns and prior violations. The temporary halt signaled escalating tension between state oversight and aggressive shale development, as communities pressed for stronger enforcement amid a surge in drilling activity.

Source: ProPublica (2009) Read More

Broad Scope of EPA’s Fracturing Study Raises Ire of Gas Industry

As the EPA widened its inquiry into hydraulic fracturing’s impact on drinking water, industry voices warned of regulatory overreach. Environmental advocates countered that only a comprehensive study could address long-standing concerns about chemical disclosure, groundwater contamination, and cumulative risk. The debate signaled a turning point: fracking was no longer a regional issue but a national policy flashpoint.

Source: ProPublica (2010) Read More

Fracking and the Environment: Natural Gas Drilling, Hydraulic Fracturing and Water Contamination

Gas drilling companies such as Halliburton say the gas drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is safe, but opponents contend it pollutes groundwater with dangerous substances.

Source: YouTube | DemocracyNow! (2009) Read More

Opinion: Avoiding America’s next drilling disaster

In the wake of the BP Gulf oil disaster, U.S. Sen. Robert Casey of Pennsylvania and U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette of Colorado warned in the Philadelphia Inquirer that hydraulic fracturing posed a parallel onshore risk, urging federal disclosure of fracking chemicals under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Challenging exemptions advanced during Vice President Dick Cheney’s 2005 energy legislation, Casey and DeGette argued that energy companies should disclose the ingredients in fracking fluids—diesel fuel, benzene, methanol, and formaldehyde among them—while preserving proprietary formulas, countering industry claims that state regulation alone was sufficient.

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer (2010) Read More

Reporter’s Notebook: Hydraulic Fracturing

Anecdotal evidence has been criticized by Gas Industry advocates in the debate over the inadequately funded EPA study. There have been many anecdotal reports of fouled wells and air pollution, unknown risks to chemical exposure and hydrogen sulfide, and methane leaking from gas compressors captured on infrared film.

Source: YouTube (2009) Read More

Opponents to Fracking Disclosure Take Big Money From Industry

The Interior Department wades into controversy as it mulls whether to require drilling companies to disclose the chemicals they use to frack wells drilled on public lands.

Source: ProPublica (2011) Read More

Environment | Daily Yonder | Keep It Rural

Lively and informative rural American blog based in Austin Texas. This section contains articles on the

Source: Daily Yonder (2007) Read More

Former Bush EPA Official Says Fracking Exemption Went Too Far

Grumbles ponders the criticism leveled at the 2004 study and suggests that it’s now time for Congress and the EPA to take another look at hydraulic fracturing.

Source: ProPublica (2011) Read More

Hazards posed by natural gas drilling are not limited to below ground

In a June 20, 2010 investigation for the Republican Herald, journalist Laura Legere reported that many of the most serious hazards from Marcellus Shale drilling occur above ground, including chemical storage, wastewater transport, and surface spills. Department of Environmental Protection records obtained through Pennsylvania’s Right-to-Know Law revealed hundreds of violations involving at least 92 drilling companies, prompting DEP Secretary John Hanger to attribute repeated spills and methane leaks—particularly involving Cabot Oil & Gas—to poor management and inadequate oversight.

Source: Republican Herald (2010) Read More