Everyone knows that California is undergoing an historic drought. It’s so bad that in many areas water of any kind is at a premium, and water clean enough for human consumption is most precious of all. Not to mention, clean drinking water is supposed to be protected by the EPA.
So how then can state officials justify giving the green-light for gas and oil companies to dump ‘fracking’ waste water into clean aquifers knowing it will result in drinking water contamination?
?It’s inexcusable,? said Hollin Kretzmann, at the Center for Biological Diversity in San Francisco. ?At (a) time when California is experiencing one of the worst droughts in history, we’re allowing oil companies to contaminate what could otherwise be very useful ground water resources for irrigation and for drinking. It’s possible these aquifers are now contaminated irreparably.??NBC Bay Area
Political Backpedaling
Jason Marshall, California’s Department of Conservation’s Chief Deputy Director, was quick to?point the finger at those who could no longer be held accountable.
?When you’re talking about wells that were permitted in 1985 to 1992, we’ve tried to go back and talk to some of the permitting engineers,? said Marshall. ?And it’s unfortunate but in some cases they (the permitting engineers) are deceased.? NBC Bay Area
But does that really matter? Regardless of who originally signed the permits or what they were thinking when they did, how has this not been discovered and stopped before now? There is plenty of accountability to be spread around, no matter how many times the buck may be passed.
Community Impact
The real issue here is how these contaminated wells are affecting the local community, and there is no lack of concern by residents.
‘?This is something that is going to slowly contaminate everything we know around here,’ said fourth- generation Kern County almond grower Tom Frantz, who lives down the road from several of the injection wells in question.”?NBC Bay Area
These aquifers feed wells that are located near homes as well as on or around farm land, and there is no way to tell what damage may have already been done.
California provides citrus and many other crops to not only the US but all across the world. That makes this issue far more than just a local concern. But in a time when the EPA obviously needs it’s powers strengthened to prevent these kinds of “errors” from occurring, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell has vowed to
“do whatever I can to get the EPA reined in.” Kentucky.com
If he is successful, how many more stories like this one will we see in the future?
