When the EPA announced that it found fracking fluids in Pavillion, Wyoming’s groundwater, the revelation harpooned industry’s go-to rebuttal against environmentalists. Consistently stating that no documented cases of groundwater contamination have been caused by fracking has been a staple of industry’s lobbying for the controversial practice. This EPA study debunks industry arguments by validating the claim that water contamination is rooted in faulty fracking practices.
Eager to protect their bottom line and continue to defer blame, oil and gas companies attacked the EPA’s findings. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) conducted its own sampling to check the original study’s results and found signs of contamination from fracking in Pavillion’s water. The data suggests that water sources in the small Wyoming town are being contaminated by gas leaking from wells, as well as being tainted with various fracking chemicals.
Analysis from Dr. Tom Myers—a hydrologist and independent expert working with the Sierra Club, Earthworks, and the Natural Resource Defense Council—determined that the data collected by USGS support the EPA’s initial findings. The USGS’s sampling and Dr. Myers’ subsequent interpretation of the raw data are two more pieces of evidence proving that industry drilling processes are jeopardizing public health and safety.
Other groups have also been wary of fracking and cited it as a cause of groundwater contamination. The EPA’s Pavillion findings show a compelling link between fracking and polluted water. The research compiled by both the EPA and USGS clearly demonstrate that drilling companies aren’t practicing responsible oil and gas development, but are putting our water and our families at risk.