The Climate Change, Water and Fracking Paradox

Three years ago I called upon our City Council to adopt a resolution to ban fracking within the City Limits of San Juan Capistrano. The resolution is, in my opinion, very straight forward, designed to protect us and the environment. It reads:

The people of the City of San Juan Capistrano have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of the environment. San Juan Capistrano's public natural resources are the common property of the people, including generations yet to come.

As a trustee of these resources, the City of San Juan Capistrano conserves and maintains them for the benefit of all the people. Therefore, it is resolved that the unconventional well stimulation technologies known as hydraulic fracturing (fracking), hi-rate gravel packing, and acidizing used to produce oil and gas from shale formations are permanently banned within the city limits of San Juan Capistrano, California and its adjacent ocean waters within the City’s jurisdiction.

I did not anticipate the rejection a simple action calling for the ban of unconventional well stimulation technologies known as hydraulic fracturing (fracking), hi-rate gravel packing, and acidizing used to produce oil and gas from shale formations, would bring. I mean how could anyone reject the idea of our right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of our environment? Especially in our beautiful little city, but reject they did. They would not even discuss it.

It is not just San Juan Capistrano, but many other communities throughout the state have remained silent, as well. I received one response that pointed out that this was a federal and state issue, not a local issue. He was wrong, very wrong. When Congress or the State legislature fails to act, it becomes a local issue, and in simplest terms, unconventional well stimulation technologies known as hydraulic fracturing (fracking), hi-rate gravel packing, and acidizing used to produce oil and gas from shale formations, present a clear and present danger to humanity. But fracking is not the only threat. Runaway population growth and the continuing drought also present a clear and present danger.

Fracking is not the only threat to our water supply. Runaway population growth and prolonged drought are also present real threats.

If the drought continues agricultural production will suffer and cost of produce will go up. There will be plenty of Agricultural land for sale with no buyers and hence, the price will fall.

Farmers who are not having job will move to city in search of job and the salary of low income people will fall.

Cost of producing or pumping water from reservoir to city will go up and in turn utility cost will go high.

If this continues for multiple years, people will decide to move out of California and will create a ripple effect. This will bring down the home price or any other price.

Hope drought should not continue and pray to get rain to put drought to end.

When New York’s legislature failed to act, 200 cities and towns took on the responsibility. They joined together and banned fracking within their city limits. This action resulted in the state banning fracking statewide. Currently seven California counties have banned fracking: Alameda, Butte, Los Angeles, Mendocino, Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz. Cities banning fracking include Beverly Hills, Berkeley, Compton, Culver City, Los Angeles Community College District, Rampart Village Neighborhood Council, and Santa Monica.

For us, here in beautiful South County, the major threats from fracking is to our water, which is mostly imported, and the food we eat–e.g.: almonds, apricots, asparagus, avocados, dates, figs, grapes, kiwi fruit, nectarines, olives, oranges, pistachios, prunes, strawberries, most of which are grown in the central valley.

During oil and natural gas production, so-called “produced water” comprises the largest byproduct stream. In addition, many oil and gas operations are augmented via injection of hydraulic fracturing (HF) fluids into the formation. Both produced water and HF fluids contain hundreds of individual chemicals, some known to be detrimental to public health and the environment . . . Hydraulic fracturing is performed at depths between 5,000 and 10,000 feet and requires 2,500,000–4,200,000 gallons of water per well. - (Pichtel, J. 2016).

We are just coming out of the sixth year of a “severe” to “exceptional” drought. Is the drought over, maybe, maybe not. While the storms helped to refill our reservoirs, they caused more than $1 billion in flood damage to roads, dams and other critical infrastructure, while still leaving us with a 11 trillion water deficit as the rain did little to recharge our drained aquifers, as it made its way to the ocean as storm runoff.

Unconventional oil development, including fracking, takes place in a variety of settings across California, from densely populated urban areas in Los Angeles, to state waters off the coast of Santa Barbara, to agricultural hubs in the Central Valley. There are 43,568 active wells in Kern County, 3,750 in Los Angeles County, 1,755 in Ventura and 691 in Monterey, for a total of 49,764 wells. These wells consume between 124,410,000,000 and 182,985,600,000 gallons of water. Recovered water is toxic and must be properly disposed.

Unfortunately, the rules are not always followed, causing additional threats to our fresh water supplies. For example, a CEASE AND DESIST ORDER (R5-2015-0093) was issued after the California Department of Water Resources identified six groundwater supply wells within one-mile of the Fee 34 and Race Track Hill Facilities. Groundwater from these wells may have been used for domestic water supply, agriculture supply, and industrial service supply. The current status of these wells is not clear and some may have been destroyed.

Can we really afford to divert that much water to other uses during an extended drought. As Ben Franklin said more than 200 years ago, “When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water.”

Second is the environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing.

First, is the proximity of drill pads to population areas, particularly schools, and the identified heath risks.
This is not a threat to us here because there are no fracking pads in our immediate area. The threat, exists in Kern county and up and down the Monterey shale range, an extensive Miocene oil-rich geological sedimentary formation.

Oil and gas fracking wells have been spewing dangerous cancer-causing chemicals into the air for years, and they have been linked to a bevy of developmental and reproductive health risks, which pose a particularly potent threat to what researchers call "our most vulnerable population”; young children and developing fetuses are especially vulnerable to environmental factors related to fracking. Within 1 kilometer of a gas well, researchers say, residents have up to twice the rate of health problems per person compared to those who lived 2 kilometers away or further.

Up to eight poisonous chemicals have been found near wells that far exceeded recommended federal limits. Benzene, a carcinogen, was the most common, as was formaldehyde, which also has been linked to cancer. Hydrogen sulfide, which smells like rotten eggs and can affect the brain and upper-respiratory system, also was found.

The risks from exposure to toxic chemicals, heavy metals and radioactive materials include a parent's worst nightmares: “infertility, miscarriage or spontaneous abortion, impaired fetal growth, and low birth weight. Recent studies have sounded the alarm about possible birth defects and long-term chronic conditions, the symptoms for which may not emerge for years.

As I said, the risks to us are relatively low given that the majority of fracking operations are being conducted more than 100 miles away in Kern county. There the threat of exposure can be life-threading.
Second, is the impact fracking has on our dwindling water supply, our most important resource. Fracking consumes millions of gallons of water, water that is mixed with some 256 chemicals, of which a number of them are carcinogenic in nature.

Which chemicals are being used is the big question, because the chemical mix is considered proprietary, the so-called “Halliburton exception” inserted into the 2005 Clean Water Act, by Vice-President Richard Cheney, and need not be disclosed.

The risks from exposure to toxic chemicals, heavy metals and radioactive materials include a parent's worst nightmares: “infertility, miscarriage or spontaneous abortion, impaired fetal growth, and low birth weight. Recent studies have sounded the alarm about possible birth defects and long-term chronic conditions, the symptoms for which may not emerge for years.

As I said, the risks to us are relatively low given that the majority of fracking operations are being conducted more than 100 miles away in Kern county. There the threat of exposure can be life-threading.
Second, is the impact fracking has on our dwindling water supply, our most important resource. Fracking consumes millions of gallons of water, water that is mixed with some 256 chemicals, of which a number of them are carcinogenic in nature.

Which chemicals are being used is the big question, because the chemical mix is considered proprietary, the so-called “Halliburton exception” inserted into the 2005 Clean Water Act, by Vice-President Richard Cheney, and need not be disclosed.