There is a general agreement among the experts and activists we've met with that the greatest risks/issues lie in two areas. One is from accidents and spills on the surface involving fracking chemicals and waste. The second is disposal of fracking and drilling waste, which brings some naturally occurring radioactive material with it when it is brought back to the surface.
Generally, proper well construction will keep this material from polluting groundwater, but some of it must be brought back to the surface as part of the process. What to do with it then is a matter of heated debate. Today we met with
Gary Abraham, who represents a citizens watchdog group that believes radioactive materials from fracked wells are leaking out of western New York landfills near the Pennsylvania border. You can learn more about him and the effort
here.
