When Jeff Andrysick and his wife Jody found out that the gas company was going to drill near their farm, they dropped everything to find out more. Then they bought a video camera and made a movie that would tell everyone in their area what they learned.

The gas company planned to drill horizontally into the ground and fracture the shale to release natural gas. This hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) technique would harm their farm’s water supply, the air quality and even the peace and quiet of their small town. People in Pennsylvania whose land was similarly fractured reported heavy trucks and machinery constantly running through their towns and dangerous chemicals suddenly appearing in the water supply, sometimes making it undrinkable, or even flammable. The gas company had never warned them of any of this. In fact, they won’t even release the names of the chemicals that they use, making it impossible to defend against them.

Jeff and Jody Andrysick hope that the film shows people another side of the natural gas story than what the companies are telling. They are trying to keep what happened in Pennsylvania out of New York. In the process, maybe these accidental film-makers will learn what chemicals are planned for their gas wells or hopefully find a way to pay for their journey into cinema. You can hear more about their experience and see the film viewing schedule at http://allfrackedup.com

Another farmer, Carl Arnold, was concerned when he heard about the gas companies’ plans. He went out of his way to talk to many people who had either worked on the process of hydraulic fracturing or live in the areas where it has been done already. His story covers the history of the new horizontal gas wells, the experience of people who live near them and the legislation and regulations that have come along the way.

For their part, the gas companies have taken a lot of time and energy to tell the public about how these new wells can be a positive part of rural New York life and a victory for American energy independence, but Mr. Arnold wants to remind his neighbours of their track record in other parts of the world where they have resorted to lying or even using violence to get to the valuable petroleum. In the process they damaged the natural ecosystem, destroying whole communities who have stood in their way.

The New York state government is considering a few bills which will temporarily stop gas drilling in the state. Meanwhile, the United States Congress is looking at new regulations for petroleum companies because of the recent oil spill. Some federal legislators want to include hydraulic fracturing into the new bill, forcing the companies to tell the public which chemicals they are putting into the ground. Since 2005, these companies have enjoyed an exemption from the 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act. Then-Vice President Dick Cheney put in the exemption for the company Halliburton, the nation’s first and leading hydraulic fracturing company.

Author Bio: If you would like to learn more, you can listen to the podcast: Natural Gas: Drilling In My Frack Yard and other human interest stories and podcasts on Septic Radio including Living With Suicide.

Category: Society
Keywords: Natural Gas, fracking, hydraulic fracking