In Wetzel County West Virginia, hydraulic fracturing (fracking) of Marcellus Shale has been a key point of controversy.  Specifically, the chemicals and ingredients used in fracturing are believed to be contaminating the water supply in the wells many residents draw water from.  Chesapeake Energy has denied responsibility for this contamination, citing that the ingredients found during tests of their water were not present in the their fracturing processes.

Chesapeake Energy released only some of the details of the frack fluid ingredient list.

According to a recent article in the Daily Journal, Chesapeake Energy representatives declined revealing all of the chemicals and ingredients present in their drilling, "instead pointing to a general fact sheet that included some but not all details about the frack fluid ingredient list."

If Chesapeake Energy is confident that their frack fluid doesn't contain harmful chemicals like Acrylonitrile, a harmful carcinogenic chemical, then they shouldn't hesitate to release a comprehensive list of all ingredients and chemicals that are present during the hydraulic fracking process.

The residents deserve to know what chemicals are being used.

The residents of Wetzel County, and anyone who lives in or around a Chesapeake Energy drilling location, should have a right to know what chemicals and ingredients are being used by the gas company.  These potentially volatile chemicals could be contaminating their water supply, but Chesapeake's refusal to grant the residents of Wetzel County a list of their chemicals and ingredients prevents them from knowing exactly what is being used.

We can help.

Signing this petition will help urge Chesapeake Energy to provide more information on the chemicals used in their drilling, instead of just a fact sheet detailing some of them.  

Photo from bjmccray on flickr