This issue of hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, is important because it has countless negative effects not only on the environment, but also on our economy, the health of humans, and the well being of nature.

The effects fracking can have on the environment are detrimental and include, but are not limited to, water contamination and air pollution. The water becomes contaminated from fracking by using massive amounts of pressure and fluids which crack the shale below the surface-- this can cause the chemicals in the fluids and the natural gas to leak into groundwater and get in our wells. The air becomes polluted through drilling procedures, transporting materials and equipment, and also disposal of the waste products. This environmental damage leads to the problems of the economy and human health effects.

The economy will take a toll from fracking because it will negatively impact the tourism we have here in North Carolina. When people come to NC, and specifically Western North Carolina, to hike the Blue Ridge Parkway or tour the Biltmore House, they do not want a drilling site blocking their views or smelling odorous and having significant amounts of truck traffic to and from the fracking sites! Some of us may even be individually impacted economically by fracking. This is because if a drilling site pops up down the road from my neighborhood/house, then value of my property and assets will depreciate. A local county study done in Battlement Mesa, Colorado showed that properties associated with drilling lost an average of 15% of their total value! I know nobody wants their land values to decline-- this can cause psychological stress and impact our health.

We can get severely sick from drinking the water that has been contaminated through a drilling site near our wells. A Pennsylvania family suffered severe illness from drinking the contaminated water. A mother of two teen children, with a pet dog, goat, and horse all became ill, with the dog actually dying. Her son was hospitalized for stomach pain, nausea, fatigue, and mouth ulcers-- he was out of school for one and a half years. The mother and her children were tested for arsenic poisoning, the results came back positive. After starting to use bottled water, their symptoms receded. We should be able to drink the water from our sinks without being concerned about getting sick from it! That's absurd! 

Fracking generates emissions and millions of gallons of hazardous wastes are dumped into open-air pits-- this can cause serious illness to those living around these areas and breathing in this polluted air. A woman in Texas cannot leave her house to walk her dog without wearing an oxygen mask because she was poisoned from breathing! She suffered from vomiting, explosive diarrhea, burning rashes, and skin lesions. Her symptoms would only worsen every time she went outside. How sad is it that we may not be able to walk our dogs without having to suit up in equipment to protect ourselves? What about our animals-- how can we protect them?

With the fracking law recently being passed in North Carolina by Governor Pat McCrory, this will soon affect all of us. Drilling sites will be set up in close proximity to our neighborhoods, our favorite hiking trails, playgrounds, and the list goes on! 

Some people may challenge my view by insisting that fracking will actually be beneficial for North Carolina because we have, according to Governor Pat McCrory, “sat on the sidelines for too long”. They believe it will help us become more energy independent, create more jobs, and some would even say that it will decrease our carbon footprint. They must be unaware that methane, which is released during fracking, leaks at least thirty percent more compared to conventional drilling—fracking cannot solve our energy problem and will most definitely not decrease our carbon footprint.

I started this petition because I know how devastating this is going to be for our families, neighbors, and state as a whole. We need to put an end to this. We need to protect ourselves and Mother Nature.

By signing this petition, it is the hope that Gov. Pat McCrory will reconsider his recent passing of the fracking law and make it once again, illegal!