Running head: HYDRAULIC FRACTURING

Hydraulic Fracturing

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HYDRAULIC FRACTURING 2

Hydraulic Fracturing

A significant percentage of oil and natural gas mining companies employ hydraulic

fracturing in their extraction process. Although I live in an area where hydraulic fracturing does

not take place, I am well conversant with the policies regulating the activity and its effect on the

environment and human health. Notably, scientists have conducted substantial studies on the

health effects of hydraulic fracturing. According to Chen and Carter (2017), hydraulic fracturing

uses and emit toxic chemicals that have adverse effects on human health. For instance, studies

have established that the gaseous chemicals resulting from the process cause respiratory

diseases[ CITATION Che17 \l 1033 ]. The health hazards associated with hydraulic fracturing

are lethal to human life and scientists should ruminate devising alternative ways of extracting

natural gas with limited health risks.

Several policies have been implemented to limit the adverse effects of hydraulic

fracturing on the environment and human health. Examples of such laws include the Safe

Drinking Water Act, Clean Air Act, and Toxic Substance Control Act. However, these regulation

have failed in protecting the environment and human health sufficiently. According to the United

States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (2017), there is inadequate enforcement of these

policies. Additionally, there are political interferences in the implementation of the regulations.

For instance, EPA (2017) points out that the Energy Policy Act of 2005 omits some elements of

hydraulic fracturing from being regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act. Such omissions create

loopholes within the law which mining companies to emit substances which are harmful to the

environment and human health. In this respect, the current policies are insufficient in protecting

the environment and human health from the effects of hydraulic fracturing.
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References

Chen, H., & Carter, K. E. (2017). Modeling potential occupational inhalation exposures and

associated risks of toxic organics from chemical storage tanks used in hydraulic

fracturing using AERMOD. Environmental Pollution, 224, 300-309.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2017). Natural Gas Extraction -

Hydraulic Fracturing. Retrieved from the United States Environmental Protection

Agency: https://www.epa.gov/hydraulicfracturing