Radioactive wastewater from fracking projects is starting to
threaten the drinking water of residents living in Ohio. The
contaminated water - filled with
toxic chemicals, carcinogenic radioactive materials like radium-226, and heavy metals - is theoretically supposed to stay deep underground in "injection wells," where it is kept far away from homes, schools, farms, and water supplies.
But instead,
it's rising to the surface, bubbling up, and endangering local residents.Sign the petition to demand a ban on fracking in the U.S. and a moratorium on injection wells for dirty fracking wastewater in Ohio!Fracking (also called hydraulic fracturing) is a process of mining for natural gas by using highly pressurized "fracking fluid" to bore into bedrock. It creates billions of gallons of wastewater, which need somewhere to go. So states like Ohio have approved the creation of injection wells, or underground sites where corporations can deposit this toxic sludge.
Marietta is a small, historical town in Washington County, Ohio. Its drinking water source - a municipal water aquifer - is supposed to provide safe, clean water to all of its 13,000 inhabitants. But state officials had previously approved the creation of
4 different injection wells within just 2 miles of this water aquifer. And these wells are now reporting levels of
radioactive waste that are up to 1,800 times higher than the safety level set by the U.S. Environment Protection Agency.
As
Susan Vessels, the president of the Marietta City Council, said:
"If we get anything nuclear in our water, that's it. We're done."Fracking and its wastewater aren't only dangerous for humans. They also wreak havoc on the environment, damaging or destroying local ecology.
The poisonous chemicals also affect wildlife and flora and fauna, creating environmental devastation.This is all at a time when humans need to be reducing our reliance on fossil fuels like natural gas, petroleum, and coal. Climate change is spiraling out of control - droughts, fires, and intensified storms are ravaging whole communities across the U.S. and across the world.
The fact that fracking not only worsens this dependency, but also poisons communities, should seal the deal: no more fracking!Sign the petition to demand that Ohio authorities put the health and safety of their residents and their environment first by shutting down and banning all injection wells, and that U.S. authorities put an end to fracking! No one deserves to be poisoned! 