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Fracking Fracking Drill Rig on the Prairie at Dusk
A lone drilling Fracking Rig set against the dramatic landscape of the American Prairie lands. The sun is setting just off camera creating beautiful yellows and oranges on the clouds above. In the far distance, wind turbines are visible. Hydraulic fracturing in the United States began in 1949. According to the Department of Energy (DOE), in 2013 at least two million oil and gas wells in the US have been hydraulically fractured, and that of new wells being drilled, up to 95% are hydraulically fractured. The output from these wells makes up 43% of the oil production and 67% of the natural gas production in the United States. Environmental safety and health concerns about hydraulic fracturing emerged in the 1980s, and are still being debated at the state and federal levels.