Since the release of the film documentary GASSLAND, by Josh Fox, the term fracking has become widely known. Yet the process of fracking, or, hydraulic fracturing, has been used since 1947 to extract natural gas and oil from deep, rock encased reservoirs of these "fossil fuels". And at the forefront of the use of this technology was none other than Halliburton.
With the discovery of vast deposits of natural gas throughout the United States, especially in the Marcellus Shale that extends throughout much of the Appalachian Basin, fracking has entered a boom stage. Touted as the panacea of America's energy crisis, the Marcellus Shale natural gas deposits have become the focal point in a battle between the energy industry, which wants to proceed full bore ahead with fracking, and environmentalist, who insist that the dangers of fracking outweigh its benefits.
And as is usually the case, when it comes to peoples safety money wins out every time...