Hydraulic fracturing facility in Rifle, Colo.
Posted on 06/24/2013 2:24:24 PM PDT by neverdem
Hydraulic fracturing facility in Rifle, Colo.
Far be it from the Environmental Protection Agency to admit it was wrong — but late last week, it subtly withdrew from a once-flashy investigation regarding whether hydraulic fracturing contaminated groundwater in the tiny town of Pavillion, Wyo. Never has backpedaling been such an effective form of transportation.
In December 2011, the EPA released a draft report of a study it conducted in Wyoming, eliciting a furor of media attention. The New York Times reported that “chemicals used to hydraulically fracture rocks in drilling for natural gas in a remote valley in central Wyoming are the likely cause of contaminated local water supplies, federal regulators said.” The Financial Times ran a story headlined “EPA blames fracking for Wyoming pollution.” National Public Radio announced that “for the first time, federal environmental regulators have made a direct link between the controversial drilling practice known as hydraulic fracturing and groundwater contamination.” And the Salt Lake Tribune ran an editorial subtitled “EPA report shows water poisoned.”
For starters, the EPA’s study was released in preliminary form, and it was never peer-reviewed. In fact, the EPA went out of its way to ensure that Wyoming’s governor and state agencies didn’t have a chance to look it over before it became publicly available. And when the study was released, the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality and the Wyoming Bureau of Land Management both expressed significant concerns about the EPA’s conclusions.
Had professional scientists had a chance to review the EPA’s preliminary study before it hit the headlines, they doubtless would have complained that only four samples were examined — not nearly enough to be scientifically definitive.
Also, the EPA had failed to find contamination in the existing water sources in Pavillion, so it drilled its own wells — but went far deeper into the earth, into natural hydrocarbon-bearing foundations. As Encana, the developer, wrote at the time, “Natural gas developers didn’t put the natural gas at the bottom of the EPA’s deep monitoring wells, nature did.” So when the test results showed hydrocarbons, that said nothing about fracking and much about the EPA’s scientific sloppiness.
Furthermore, the methods and materials used to drill the EPA’s sample wells may well have introduced chemical contaminates.
And different labs reached contradictory conclusions about the small samples the EPA collected. One lab even reported that the “blank” sample used solely for comparison purposes was tainted.
But the details of how recklessly the EPA conducted its study were omitted in many of the sensational reports that followed the draft report’s release.
And the few journalistic accounts that acknowledged the study’s problems were dismayed about the implications of its very public debut. Wyoming’s Casper Tribune wrote in an editorial: “You think Pavillion water is a mess? Try setting the record straight if the EPA’s report is eventually changed or discredited after scientific review. . . . The EPA may have poisoned the public debate by releasing its [preliminary] report.”
That assessment is proving prophetic. EPA reps said this week that although the agency “stands behind its work and data,” the study won’t be finalized, and the Obama administration won’t rest on the report’s conclusions. That’s a nice talking point, but if the Pavillion study could actually stand up to scrutiny, you can bet the EPA would be using it to act — and to act boldly.
But in the end, it didn’t matter much whether fracking had actually contaminated Wyoming’s water; having the public think it did sufficed for the EPA. So go the cynical politics of an agency with an agenda.
— Jillian Kay Melchior is a Thomas L. Rhodes Fellow for the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity.
Shut this criminal agency down!
What was their bonus for making this up?
Five Hundred Million each?
Pensions for each of their family members?
Waivers from ObamaCARE?
And of course, the required hookers and drinks in Hawaii
needed to check the fictitious figures.
Were the authors US citizens?
Will there be accountability?
(why even ask, I suppose).
I don’t know if the pipe dweller has left the pipe but he’s protesting fracking.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3034986/posts
The government lied, again.
Why come out and admit it? The EPA, in as much as it may differ from the global warming fanatics—not much, should learn a lesson from them, and lie bigger when caught in a lie. It’s what leftists do.
Excerpt from the article: “........only four samples were examined — not nearly enough to be scientifically definitive.
Also, the EPA had failed to find contamination in the existing water sources in Pavillion, so it drilled its own wells — but went far deeper into the earth, into natural hydrocarbon-bearing foundations. As Encana, the developer, wrote at the time, “Natural gas developers didn’t put the natural gas at the bottom of the EPA’s deep monitoring wells, nature did.” So when the test results showed hydrocarbons, that said nothing about fracking and much about the EPA’s scientific sloppiness.
Furthermore, the methods and materials used to drill the EPA’s sample wells may well have introduced chemical contaminates.” end excerpt.
All of this cost money. Lots of money. It was intentionally misused money to “prove” their agenda. IT WAS OUR MONEY THEY BLEW ON THIS. It was taxpayer money. Confiscated taxpayer money they blew trying to make a square peg fit a round hole. They lied, and they abused we the people while they were at it by abusing their management of our monies.
We need to eliminate the evil that is the Left from every aspect of our government.
Thanks for the link. The left is becoming unbearable. We need a divorce.
Sum Beaches...
For far too many years, the EPA’s real and primary goal has been to kill capitalism, the rest is just window dressing.
EPA up to their usual tricks.
Colorado Ping ( Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from the list.)
They have been completely discredited by promoting the Climate Change scam for so long.
Why would anyone with an IQ over 1.5 believe that fracking is bad just because a movie had fire coming out of a water faucet and a farcical government agency lying to them?
Sounds like EPA had their crack AGW crew working on this project.
When lying is your main method, stick with it! What dummies. Doesn't the 'P' in EPA stand for 'prevarication?'
“We're gonna give every one of you 40 acres and a mule.
And a mule? -40 acres and a mule!
Because we're your friend.”
“You will be allowed to hunt from the Black Hills westward to the Big Horn Mountains for as long as the rivers flow and the grass will grow and their dead lie buried”
“Obamacare will SAVE you money”
“We the IRS wasn't targeting the TEA Party or other patriotic groups”
“The Benghazi thugs were riled up over an obscure video on YouTube”
That's the ticket!
“Sloppiness”, my eye teeth!
This is the equivalent of a police chief throwing down a weapon to incriminate Joe Businessman!
Shut the EPA down now!
HF
I’m still waiting on my promised unicorn with purple glitter.
Bush killed them all and then ate them. :-(
Jim FR really needs a “like” button . . .
According to a story on Brietbart they probably got a new car too . . .
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