Shouldn't everyone be concerned about "urban" gas drilling in Highland Heights?

Since council agreed to Mayor Coleman's plan to conduct gas drilling in the Community Park and on city hall property, I have been working hard to educate myself and city officials about the safety and environmental issues that this kind of "urban" drilling presents to our community and Highland Heights residents.

Some council members have been very receptive to learning more, whereas others---including the Mayor and council members Mills, Pilla, Anderson, and Lombardo (who signed their names to the green misinformation sheet opposing the Charter Amendment, which bans drilling on city property and protects the park) have been less so. http://blog.cleveland.com/sunmessenger/2008/11/highland_hts_issue_63_passes_r.html

Last night, a national news station broadcast a video clip recorded near Denver, Colorado, which showed a homeowner literally setting fire to his water as it came out of his kitchen sink tap.

http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-firewater-032309,0,5726629.story
http://www.greeleytribune.com/article/20090320/NEWS/903199938/1002/NONE&parentprofile=1001&title=VIDEO%20%20Flammable%20water%20fires%20up%20Fort%20Lupton%20homeowners


This is the deal.

The urban drilling that is going on here is not the old fashioned--drill a hole straight down to tap into a pocket of gas sitting underground--kind of drilling

It is call "fractional" or "frac" drilling. The drilling companies inject what they call drilling "mud," which is a combination of water, sand, and toxic chemicals, into the ground, with the intent of fracturing shale rock to release natural gas trapped in the shale. Drilling companies can drill diagonally for long distances, potentially creating a honeycomb of drilling shafts underground.

The reality of frac drilling is:

(1) not all the toxic chemicals used in the drilling "mud" returns to the surface--some stays in the ground;

(2) not all of the newly released gas is captured and transported up to the wellhead; and

(3) the gas can, along with the toxic drilling chemicals, travel long distances along rock formations and can contaminate the soil and seep into ground water.

The video shows gas that has been released by frac drilling, which has gotten into the local drinking supply. The homeowner is igniting the invisible, odorless gas that is entering his home with his drinking water.

That is probably what caused the house in Bainbridge to explode recently---and unfortunately the gas contaminatination there has not yet been contained. Another home had to be evacuated several months ago because of gas that had traveled from the Bainbridge well and seeped into the homeowner's basement. http://www.chagrinvalleytimes.com/NC/0/274.html

A couple of things that residents need to keep in mind, as drilling companies come knocking on our doors (making who knows what promises to us and to our local politicians):

1. All of the gas released from frac drilling does not necessarily get captured by the drilling company. The released gas, along with the toxic chemicals used in frac drilling mud, can easily travel beyond the drilling leasehold, contaminating soil and ground water throughout the city.

2. We get our drinking water from Lake Erie. Our city is loaded with streams that are headwaters for Euclid Creek, which runs into Lake Erie. The toxic chemicals used in drilling mud, and the natural gas released during frac drilling in Highland Heights and surrounding communities has the potential to contaminate our ground water and drinking supplies.

Don't believe me? Then watch the video again.

And if you think its not a problem in our area, check out what has happened to water supplies in Pennsylvania:

http://www.reuters.com/article/GCA-BusinessofGreen/idUSTRE52C07920090313 http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSTRE52J6AP20090320