Edward Norton Speaks Out Against Fracking in Maryland

The anti-fracking movement has gained celebrity momentum in Maryland.

Columbia native Edward Norton spoke out against “fracking,” or hydraulic fracturing, in a radio spot that aired Tuesday.

“Before I became an actor, I grew up in Maryland and spent a lot of my youth in its pristine natural beauty,” said Norton, a Columbia native and grandson of Columbia’s founder James Rouse.

“But now a dangerous form of gas drilling called fracking threatens our state’s environmental health,” Norton continued. “There’s strong evidence that fracking can poison our water and air. It risks both our health and tourism economy...”

Norton, who is known as a movie star in films like Birdman and Fight Club, has worked off camera as an environmental activist to protect lands and wildlife from Oregon to Africa.

At the end of the 30-second radio spot in Maryland, Norton directed people to dontfrackmd.org, where they can sign a petition to oppose fracking. His ad ran on WTOP and WBAL and was sponsored by Food and Water Watch, a national environmental advocacy nonprofit that is working to ban fracking.

The fracking process involves drilling into shale and injecting a pressurized mix of water, sand and chemicals to crack rock and release trapped oil or gas.

Opponents say fracking carries risks like well blowouts, fracking fluid spills and unsafe disposal of flowback—the toxic, briny wastewater that rises to the surface. In addition, the natural gas consists mostly of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and some methane escapes during shale gas production.

Proponents say natural gas is a cleaner form of energy than coal or oil and will help the United States achieve energy independence.

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The Maryland Senate passed a bill placing a moratorium on fracking Tuesday, the day after the House passed similar legislation, according to The Hill.

Each branch of congress voted 45-2 in favor of the proposal, which puts a hold on permits for hydraulic fracturing until October 2017, according to WBAL.

Gov. Larry Hogan would have to sign the bills into law and while the Republican governor supports fracking, he has not taken a position on the proposed moratorium, according to The Hill.

While running for governor, Hogan told Capital News Service: “States throughout the country have been developing their natural gas resources safely and efficiently for decades. I am concerned that there has been a knee-jerk reaction against any new energy production.”

Capital News Service contributed to this report.

Photo Credit: Don’t Frack Maryland.

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