Fracking; Putting a price on our state parks

Blackwater Falls State Park, West Virginia

 - budgettravel.com

American National and State parks are being destroyed because of the process involved in fracking for natural gas. There are many negative effects of tracking that far outweigh the benefits of cheap gas.

Environmental issues include:

• Roads constructed through pristine forest
• Forests are clear cut
• Fracking creates toxic water as a byproduct
• Can poison the water table

There also are negative effects on the economy. Although fracking is a cheap new way to access natural gas, its not as good as one would think.

Economic Issues include:

• Overzealous drilling and complex financial deals resulted in a price tailspin
• The price is low for consumers, but companies are not making money - there is too much
• After most recent boom, areas with high drilling have now dwindled and local economies are suffering.

States converting their state parks into drilling hubs have had only negative results, and it has ended up hurting the economy more then helping it. Consumers may have a lower price for gas in the short term, but they will lose their State Parks. State Parks are places of beauty, and a place to enjoy nature. The marginal benefit is much higher for people to have the valuable resource of nature, verses a few cents less a year in gas bills. Is fracking really a good use of our country's resources?

The Authors are from the New York Times. Clifford Krause and Eric Lipton are both Business and energy corespondents for a highly reputable news paper and magazine. The Articles were both published in on 10/21/12.

Sources: Budget Travel Magazine : State Parks In Peril

              New York Times: After the Boom In Natural Gas