I was glad to see so much publicity around Yoko Ono's visit to fracking sites in Pennsylvania as well as a number of opponents speaking out against fracking.
I wonder what energy source was used to get the buses and media to the Pennsylvania sites? What energy source is used for the critics to get to their designated protest points or to transmit their views; where does this electricity come from anyway? I hope their homes are warm during this cold spell and that they stay cool this summer. I am sure their homes do this automatically without an external energy source.
My point is: We are dependent on our current energy sources. Is Big Oil guilty of making this possible? Why, yes, of course. Is it acceptable for Big Oil to actually make money doing this? Absolutely it is. Should Big Oil provide this energy in a responsible, healthy and safe manner? The answer continues to be yes.
Fracking is not a new technology, and it is not, just like almost everything else, without some risk. The risks can and should be mitigated through proper oversight and management by public authorities. Make the energy companies pay for their own regulation, but allow it to happen in this manner. It is not only the Big Oil companies and the few land owners who benefit from abundant and relatively cheap gas supply. We, as a society of consumers of this product, also benefit in a number of ways.
Until a new and hopefully better source of energy is developed and made available on a wide-scale basis, we have to utilize what we have available to us at this time to affordably meet the demands for energy that exists today and into the near future.
WILLIAM MAHLUM
Ballston Spa