Recent Publications

Hydrofracking’s proposed a  massive industrial transformation on a huge swath of rural Northeastern U.S.  It has divided communities and sparked an intense public debate about science, economics, law making and enforcement.  Under the Surface tells the story of the Marcellus Gas Rush and is written by Tom Wilber, a newspaper reporter who covered the environmental beat for Binghamton, N.Y.’s Press & Sun Bulletin. Recommended!

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Jonathan McIntoshs' Remix Video is a critical and transformative work that constitutes a Fair Use in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107. Source footage from Chevron TV ads, US Army ad, BBC News, Future Weapons, CSI and several other short clips recorded off television.
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Not long ago scientists thought that the placenta shielded cord blood — and the developing baby — from most chemicals and pollutants in the environment. But now we know that at this critical time when organs, vessels, membranes and systems are knit together from single cells to finished form in a span of weeks, the umbilical cord carries not only the building blocks of life, but also a steady stream of industrial chemicals, pollutants and pesticides that cross the placenta as readily as residues from cigarettes and alcohol.
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In the absence of federal policies that are protective of child development and the ecology of the planet on which our children's lives depend, we serve as our own regulatory agencies and departments of the interior...
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Do you know that pediatric cancer is the leading disease killer of children in the United States? That 35 children are diagnosed with cancer in the US every day? Do you know that, according to the National Cancer Institute, pediatric cancer as a whole received only $200 million for research in 2009?

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Change.org, the website that allows users to create petitions for social change, received a legal threat from Peabody Energy after Coal Kills Kids (CKK) -- a group that partnered with the Yes Men to unveil a faux Peabody charity initiative earlier this week -- continued the hoax with a mock petition.

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Broder's piece goes on to offer a smokescreen of protest by the right, but according to Dusty Horwitt of the Environmental Working Group, “An industry insider like John Deutch is completely unacceptable to lead this panel...It looks as if the Obama Administration has already reached the conclusion that fracking is safe.”
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A federal proposal laying out new standards for a controversial natural-gas drilling practice called hydraulic fracturing likely won’t be issued until after the 2012 elections...the timing of the standards would take that hot-button issue off the table.

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Email correspondence between William M. Foster, Auburn, NY and Fracking Resource Guide.  The letter published in the Auburn Citizen on April 1, 2011 follows at the end of this post.

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Of all the lobbyists bringing their issues to Capitol Hill, the Groundwater Protection Council is one of the smaller players.  I have to wonder, reading the rankings on Open Secrets, "Lobbying Spending Database: Environment, 2009", why this groundwater organization spends less on its annual lobbying than "Fur Wraps the Hill" or the "Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy"?  Groundwater is a hot button national issue, affecting both the urban and agricultural sectors.
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Numerous complainants petitioned the USA government to get the EPA to review the earlier decision on hydraulic fracking. One of them, from Neil Zusman, Ithaca, NY, is particularly poignant: I have read widely on this topic and it is of personal interest to me. I am not a scientist. I observe the events along the historical timeline that includes civil rights, anti-war protest, and the environmental movement....
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For the first time, a scientific study,  has linked natural gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing with a pattern of drinking water contamination so severe that some faucets can be lit on fire.

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The lawyer leading a $33-million lawsuit against Encana, the Alberta government and the province’s energy regulator says the case speaks to broader environmental concerns across North America about fracking.

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FrackCheckWV.net was created as a platform for educating citizens about the environmental impacts of hydraulic fracturing and providing tools and guidance for effective citizen action and advocacy.

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On Friday 25 March, environmental activist Lewis Pugh delivered a passionate call to action at a public lecture in Cape Town. He implored South Africans to stand up for our rights – particularly the right to water, and the right to a healthy environment – and take on corporate bullies like Shell. If you care about the Karoo, if you care about our country, keep reading...

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Sens. Tony Avella, D-Whitestone, Liz Krueger, D-Manhattan, and Joseph Addabbo, D-Queens, introduced a package of bills April 11 that includes three bills for tighter regulations and transparency for oil and gas drilling and a bill by Avella to ban hydraulic fracturing, or hydrofracking, in New York State.

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Stop Fracking Ontario is a web project to inform and promote activism against fracking in Ontario,  in the surrounding region, and elsewhere.

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South Africa’s Cabinet endorsed the Department of Mineral Resources’ decision to declare a moratorium on natural-gas drilling in the Karoo region, halting plans by Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA), Europe’s largest oil company.

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“Do you know what fracking the Karoo is like?” demanded Esme Senekal of Somerset East. The people from Royal Dutch Shell and their consultants didn’t reply, their faces impassive.  “It’s like you coming and drilling holes in our mother, and then leaving us to look after her and take her to hospital. Leave the Karoo alone!
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Americans depend on clean and abundant water. However, over the past decade, interpretations of Supreme Court rulings removed some critical waters from Federal protection, and caused confusion about which waters and wetlands are protected under the Clean Water Act.
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