Fracking

Hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) produces fractures in rock formations (thousands of feet below the surface) by pumping large quantities of fluids at high pressure down vertical and horizontal wellbores in order to extract natural gas or oil.  The hydraulic fracturing fluid consists of water, proppant (sand, ceramic pellets) and chemical additives including volatile organic chemicals and carcinogens like benzene, methyl benzene, and formaldehyde.

Once the injection process is completed, the internal pressure of the rock formation causes fluid to return to the surface through the wellbore. This “flowback” or “produced water” may contain the injected chemicals plus naturally occurring materials such as brines, metals, radionuclides, and hydrocarbons.

Environmental hazards associated with fracking includes air pollution, ground water and surface water contamination, wastewater disposal concerns, shrinking water supplies, potential earthquakes, and habitat loss.

In February 2021, after more than a decade of study, public comment, and advocacy, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) adopted a final rule permanently banning high-volume hydraulic fracturing throughout the Delaware River Basin. All four basin states — New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, and Delaware — voted in favor of the ban, with only the federal representative from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers abstaining. The rule also addresses related concerns by restricting the import of fracking wastewater into the basin and the export of basin water for use in fracking elsewhere.