State trying to overturn Pittsburgh's ban on fracking within city limits

Amy Goodman interviews former Pittsburgh City Council member Doug Shields.

New fracking docu reveals extense of operations: Meet the Frackers

Meet the Frackers is a new short documentary by Journeyman Pictures. Fracking is in your back yard and the effects of fracking are becoming more clear by the day. Fracking operations are exempt from regulations under the Clean Water Act and are exempt from other regulations concerning groundwater protection. What makes this documentary interesting is that there are several interviews from employees in the fracking industry. You really come to understand what a boom it is to these workers. But once again the question must be asked, at what cost?

Fracking is under way in 34 states.

NOW on PBS highlights fracking dangers

Josh Fox discovered that there's a profound problem with hydraulic fracturing for natural gas.



In Gasland, Fox documents the various health issues and environmental issues associated with fracking operations. NOW on PBS talked with Fox about his work and what he uncovered about widespread fracking practices in his award winning documentary on the subject. The biggest concern with fracking is what it does to local reservoirs and water supplies. There are a great deal of wells popping up in my running grounds back home in America, and in the areas my Cajun family transplanted to decades ago in some of the most beautiful country you have ever seen in Arkansas. Like other parts of the country where fracking occurs, no one really knows how some of the natural springs and aquifers work. Heck, in my corner of the Ozark Mountains in Missouri, there are springs where no one has figured out where the water comes from and where it goes. Considering the risks with fracking, is it worth more than likely contaminating your and everyone else's clean water?