The American Petroleum Institute (API) recently criticized the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Scientific Advisory Board response report requesting more information on the safety of hydraulic fracturing.
“The science is clear, and the studies are completed,” API Upstream and Industry Operations Director Erik Milito said. “Study after study shows that hydraulic fracturing is safe. The benefits of hydraulic fracturing have made the United States the No. 1 producer of oil and natural gas in the world, and largely due to affordable and abundant supplies of natural gas, we are also leading the world in reducing carbon and other emissions. Carbon emissions are down to levels not seen in more than two decades – a model resulting not from government mandates and regulations, but private investment and innovation.”
The EPA has released a draft Assessment Report based on data from a five-year, multi-million-dollar study on the subject. The draft includes information from more than 950 sources and shows no widespread, systemic affects on drinking-water quality, as some opponents have alleged.
“Instead of denying the scientific evidence
proving the environmental benefits of hydraulic fracturing, the United States
should be celebrating the overwhelming data demonstrating that hydraulic
fracturing is helping reduce GHG emissions and other emissions, and has helped
lower energy costs for consumers,” Milito said.
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