By the Sylvanian Editorial Staff
You may be aware that fracking and its byproducts have created tremendous environmental damage in the past several years in Pennsylvania and other states. Fracking is an extractive technique that removes natural gas from otherwise hard-to-extract gas fields, many of which Pennsylvania has the dubious honor of possessing. In late February 2021, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) voted unanimously to ban fracking in the River Basin. This was profiled in a recent article by Aaron Mok, an Editorial Fellow at Sierra Magazine:
The Delaware River Basin, a 13,539-square-mile watershed that cuts through Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania is now off-limits to fracking. In late February, the five-member Delaware River Basin Commission—the interstate government agency that oversees the basin—voted 4–0 to permanently ban the extraction of methane gas in the region. The decision comes a decade after the commission authorized a de facto moratorium on well construction and follows other fracking bans across the East Coast, marking a historic win for anti-fracking activists. The state commissioners—the governors of each state—all voted in favor of the ban. The federal commissioner abstained.
Michael Brune, Executive Director of the Sierra Club, posted on his blog celebrating this historic win:
Steadfast, united opposition from communities and environmental organizations is having a powerful impact on the fracked gas industry. Between divestment campaigns and persistently low gas prices, the industry is struggling to get the financing it needs to continue operations, let alone expand. In July, it was forced to cancel the 600-mile, $8 billion fracked gas Atlantic Coast Pipeline, offering yet another example of how it’s becoming nearly impossible for these polluting corporations to build new pipelines. From Oregon to Texas, its plans to build new gas export terminals are crumbling. Dozens of cities have joined the movement to replace fracked gas with clean energy in our homes, businesses, and other buildings. And it’s being increasingly supplanted by affordable, abundant renewable energy.
Brune notes that we cannot simply celebrate this win without also being aware of the need that fossil fuel workers will have for good jobs in a new energy economy.
While fossil fuel executives often get golden parachutes on the way out the door, fossil fuel workers don’t. As the era of fracked gas comes to an end, we must ensure that the affected workers have access to wage support, job retraining, and other resources.
We encourage you to read both articles and celebrate this win, while also joining efforts to support renewable energy and sustainable employment for those impacted by these changes.
This blog was included as part of the Spring 2021 Sylvanian newsletter. Please click here to check out more articles from this edition!