Most people associate the term "fracking" with bad. It is all over the news with protesters and debates. However, I would like to present the positives and negative sides of Fracking in a simple manner. Therefore, people can be informed and decide for themselves as opposed to what they are fed on the media.
Fracking is the process of extracting natural gas from rocks in the earth by breaking them. This can be done by pumping chemicals into the ground where the targeted area lies. After, the rocks are broken and the gas is released up through a pipe to be shipped off in a truck to whatever plant wants it.
CON: The reason that people are so against fracking is due to the ability to damage ground water. Breaking parts of the ground can lead to cracks that connect to the water table. This may also happen within issues of leaks in tools used for extraction. You most likely have seen the videos online where people can set their tap water on fire.
PRO: This is actually a very hard bargain. Natural Gas actually produces the same amount of energy as CO2 but only emits half of the emissions. This is due to it's chemical structure. Things like coal and oil have a chemical structure that on average allows 2 Hydrogen atoms to bond with Carbon.
Methane, in Natural Gas, allows 4 Hydrogen atoms to bond with each Carbon. To make a long story short, energy potential is within the amount of bonds made. Methane has 2x the amount of bonds that Coal does, therefore it can create 2x the amount of energy at the same emissions.
I believe that somewhere there must be some common ground to pursue the climate benefits of Fracking while protecting the water. Maybe with more regulation and diligence in practice, it can become safer and more acceptable.
