Hydraulic Fracturing: What the Frack Are We Doing to the Planet?

If you’re like me, when you first saw the headline about fracking, you went and looked at it because of the obvious Battlestar Galactica reference. That’s not the case here, however, and in this case it’s a real problem that studies are only now bringing to light. Recent information suggests that there might be a connection between the practice of hydraulic fracturing and earthquakes in an Ohio town, as reported by the Youngstown Vindicator.

What is fracking? Hydraulic fracturing is the practice of pumping a fracturing fluid (typically water, chemical addictives and proppants, which are grains of sand or ceramic, usually) into a bore dug (called a wellbore) deep into rock (usually in the range 1 to 4 miles deep).

Under extreme pressure already, the rock will fracture along stress points as more and more fluid is pumped down into it, allowing fossil fuels to be retrieved at a greater rate or creating

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