Do you know what fracking is? Google it. You may not know it by that name, maybe you have heard of Horizontal Hydraulic Fracturing. Well, they are one and the same.
The fracking boom happened a few years ago, but is still happening now. Natural gas and oil companies are going around and asking people if they can buy the mineral rights for their property. They usually make it sound nicer than it is, by calling it “directional drilling.” These companies offer big money for the mineral rights. But even if you say no, they can still drill under your land: say one of your neighbors sells their mineral rights. The company comes in and starts a well. They drill straight down and then, they drill horizontally under your land. It is a way to get what they want.
Sometimes though, companies will try to buy land that is for sale. They’ll go to an auction and bid on it until they get it. Many protesters go to the auctions to bid so that the companies have to pay more for the land. Many people get arrested. One of my dad’s friends went to a meeting and they wouldn’t let him in because he had long hair.
One of our friends, who sadly is no longer living, went to an auction. Her husband had told her not to get arrested. All the people who yelled in protest were arrested. She tried to think what she could do to protest, but not get arrested.
She started to cry.
Now, I know that I don’t like crying in front of my family. Imagine crying in front of a bunch of strangers. It took a lot of courage and anger to do that.
The men from the companies just looked at her. They were uncomfortable. They had made a woman cry.
Think about it.
Woman are still not treated as equals to men. We’re getting there, but not yet. She used that to her advantage. She knew that it would make them uncomfortable to have made a woman cry. She used sexism to her advantage.
Fracking is a terrible thing. Last year in May, there was a 4.2 magnitude earthquake in Michigan, some people felt it in Wisconsin. Wisconsin!! As you all probably know, earthquakes in Michigan are rare. Getting more prevalent actually.
The epicenter of the earthquake was within a few miles of a fracking waste well.
Fracking has been know to be the cause of earthquakes. Yet people refused to put the obvious two and two together. Within a few miles! And they didn’t think it was related! Humans aren’t stupid, but sometimes they sure act like it.
So please take this into mind before you sell the mineral rights to your land. Or go into the oil and gas industry. Fracking is bad for our mother.