Fracking opponents cite stronger proof of harms, gas companies tout new mitigation methods

It's been 12 years since the New Brunswick government last considered allowing fracking for shale gas. And a lot has happened in science and technology in that time. They can do bigger fracks on longer distances. Jim Emberger of the New Brunswick Anti-Shale Gas Alliance says fracking requires larger volumes of water today than it used to. But the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers says fracking fluid can also be reused now to reduce the amount of water needed. And we have been able to reduce our freshwater use by 1.7 billion gallons. Emberger says fracking wastewater has proven to be a valid concern. It's not staying where they put it all the time. It is migrating and can threaten water supplies. We all have learned. Geological engineer and fracking expert Maurice Dussault says this almost never happens, and usually it's not because of fracking, but because of the way the well is built. We actually have very few cases of the hydraulic fracturing fluid itself contaminating the surface or contaminating an aquifer. We always expect that guidelines are modified or that procedures are put into place to avoid such incidents in the future. Emberger holds up recent scientific studies linking health risks to living near fracking sites. With everything from premature birth to birth defects to childhood-like leukemia to asthma to cardiovascular problems, the list goes on. Dussault says the regulations are tighter today and the chemicals milder. The industry, appropriately, was put under great pressure to make sure that these chemicals and materials that went into the hydraulic stimulation process were non-toxic, benign, unlikely to lead to, say, human risk in terms of toxicity or ground contamination from a spill. We've noticed these new earthquakes that have been happening. Dussault says it's certain today that fracking can cause earthquakes. He says places including Alberta use seismic monitoring and a traffic light system to manage it. At a certain magnitude, fracking must shut down. It's the red light. And then the regulator works with the company about reducing the injection rate, reducing the injection volumes, reducing the injection pressures in order to reduce the probability of having a large event again. The most important developments in Emberger's view have been in climate science. He says the planet is warming at an alarming pace. The scientists are telling us 1.5 is no longer a goal. We're there every year. It has been hotter than the year before, the last decade. And floods, forest fires, heat domes, diseases aided by climate change are killing tens of thousands of people or more every single year. The industry says it's cutting down on methane leaks, but the Canadian Climate Institute says it looks like greenhouse gas emissions were up last year, mainly because more gas was used for heat and electricity. We'll find out in January what the New Brunswick government makes of everything that's changed, and whether it warrants lifting the shale gas moratorium.