A crew works on a gas drilling rig at a well site for shale based natural gas in Zelienople, Pa. (Keith Srakocic, The Associated Press File)
Re: Looking past oil and gas industry spin, April 3 Steve Lipsher column.
Steve Lipsher argues that the oil and gas industry is waging an Astroturf campaign of misinformation. He spends an inordinate amount of space dedicated to earthquakes, though he also sneaks in mention about ruining the landscape with roads and drill pads, spills and the likelihood that … fracking fluids …will end up in water supplies.
Lipsher leaves out the part about the Environmental Protection Agency study that supports the industry s right to frack and declares its safety, but that science didn t prevent him from poisoning the well of public opinion.
As for earthquakes, what to make of Lipsher s observations of Coloradans for Responsible Energy Development s website? He took one sentence from a much longer page and cited it out of context. The truth is, fracking causes earthquakes like dogs shoot people. Does it actually happen? Yes. Is it incredibly rare out of the total number of incidents recorded? Yes. Get all the facts.
Amy Sherman, Littleton
The writer is chair of the Douglas County Energy Coalition.
This letter was published in the April 10 edition.Yes, Coloradans for Responsible Energy Development — an effort to educate the public about fracking — is funded by the oil and natural gas industry. We are always up front about that. However, most of the data and research referenced on our website is from the country s top universities and leading scientists, not from industry. Lipsher blatantly ignores this and other facts on our website. Instead, he makes an unsubstantiated assertion that there is a likelihood that fracking fluids will somehow float through a mile of shale to groundwater. He cites no evidence for this allegation because there isn t any. In fact, in the last year, the EPA and five universities — including Yale and Colorado State University — have released studies finding that fracking does not harm drinking water.
Karen Crummy, Denver
The writer is communications director for Coloradans for Responsible Energy Development.
This letter was published in the April 10 edition.
