Hydraulic Fracking Pros And Cons

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The developing evidence has begun to stir conflict between industry representatives and environmental groups and U.S. citizens. Industry representatives claim that hydraulic fracking is precise, safe and an environmental friendly alternative because it lessens dependency on coal and oil energy. Spokesperson for the Marcellus Shale Coalition, a business lobbying group, Travis Windle stated, “The technology rivals NASA” with its precision (McGlynn 1051). Hydraulic fracturing is also toted at as sustainable energy source because of the huge underground shale deposit, known as the Marcellus Shale, but the U.S. Geological Survey in 2011, determined that “only 84 trillion cubic feet of Marcellus natural gas is economically recoverable with existing …show more content…
Renewable energy sources from the sun, wind, ocean and geothermal offer a cleaner and cheaper alternative to natural gas producing in hydraulic fracking and fossil fuels. In Jay Warmke’s article, “Fact vs. Fiction: How Renewables Outshine Fracking”, he concludes that based on exponential growth, wind and solar energy is expected to produce more than 50 percent of all energy in the United States (Warmke). Renewable energy technology is showing nothing but promise of further growth and development, and within the ten years, wind energy capacity has increased by more than 960 percent (Warmke). Renewable energy installations are costing less and less, and since 2008, the cost of wind turbines has decreased by almost 30 percent, and the cost of wind energy has replaced coal as the cheapest source of electricity, and continues to decline in cost while the financial and environmental burden of coal only increase (Warmke). In 1991, the Pacific Northwest National Lab found that wind energy resources in just three states could provide electricity for the entire United States (Flavin and Sawin). Researchers at Stanford University estimated the global wind energy potential at “72,000 gigawatts”, or ten times more electricity than the world currently uses (Flavin and Sawin). The decline in solar energy costs is largely due to the development of photovoltaic (PV) technology, making solar energy more efficient and increasing its productivity. From 2011 to 2012, the average cost of a PV system declined by 33 percent, and solar panel costs fell by 58 percent (Warmke). Currently, one million homes are being powered by solar energy, representing an increase of solar energy capacity by more than 1,200 percent (Warmke). Solar energy is more abundant than wind energy, and solar energy hitting earth’s surface each day is enough to supply the world’s
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