The Issue
Fracking
EWG’s investigations highlight the inherent risks of the current boom in drilling and hydraulic fracturing operations and empower citizens and lawmakers to work for better regulation.
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The Latest on Fracking
Chemical-laden wastewater generated by a natural gas hydraulic fracturing operation killed more than half a stand of trees in a field study at the Monongahela National Forest, according to a new report from the U.S. Forest Service.
Read MoreReligious leaders, community representatives, environmental groups and health advocates from 100 organizations representing 2 million people in 13 states have united to protest the U.S. Energy Department's decision to set up an advisory panel on hydraulic fracturing dominated by people with financial ties to the natural gas industry.
Read MoreHydraulic fracturing has been around for decades. But now, natural gas producers are deploying a new gas drilling method called high-volume horizontal hydraulic fracturing to release gas locked in untapped shale formations.
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Community leaders, environmental organizations, faith-based groups and health advocates are calling on Secretary of Energy Steven Chu to reform the industry-dominated Natural Gas Subcommittee he set up to investigate safety issues raised by hydraulic fracturing.
Read MoreThe natural gas industry has lost much support among adults who live in communities where fracking has left the water undrinkable and home values plummeting, but all is not lost.
Read MoreUnderscoring the risks to drinking water supplies of hydraulic fracturing, three water samples collected from private wells following a blowout at a Chesapeake Energy Corp. natural gas drilling site in northeast Pennsylvania have been found to be contaminated, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said today.
Read MoreFollowing up on last week's contentious hearing in Washington, Pa., the U.S. Energy department has scheduled two all-day sessions for Tuesday, June 28, and Wednesday, July 13, to listen to people concerned about controversial hydraulic fracturing operations in the Appalachian shale gas fields.
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Following up on last week’s contentious hearing in Washington, Pa., the U.S. Energy department has scheduled two all-day sessions for Tuesday, June 28, and Wednesday, July 13, to listen to people concerned about controversial hydraulic fracturing operations in shale gas fields.
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The natural gas industry is pulling out all the stops to build a friendly crowd of drilling and fracking supporters at a federal Energy Department field hearing on fracking scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday in Washington, Penn., the heart of the mid-Atlantic natural gas production region.
Read MoreMonday night, June 13, is your chance to speak up on behalf of America's drinking water and to help protect your land from damage from oil and gas drilling.
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Environmental Working Group (EWG) filed a Freedom of Information Act request 
with the U.S. Department of Energy today to uncover why the Obama Administration stacked a panel investigating oil and gas drilling and fracking safety with industry representatives while denying membership to citizens in affected communities.
The California State Assembly has passed legislation sponsored by Environmental Working Group and Earthworks to require oil and natural gas drillers to make public a complete list of chemicals they use in oil and natural gas hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) operations. The fracking issue has raised alarms in communities nationwide because some chemicals injected into the earth to break up rock formations and free oil and gas are known human carcinogens such as benzene, xylene, toluene and diesel fuel.
Read MoreEWG calls for resignation of John Deutch, chairman of the Secretary of Energy’s advisory board on natural gas extraction and hydraulic fracturing, because of financial ties to the oil and gas industry.
Read MoreDuring a public meeting of the Secretary of Energy’s advisory board on natural gas extraction and hydraulic fracturing, the Environmental Working Group called on the panel’s chairman to resign because of his financial ties to the oil and gas industry.
Read MoreEnergy secretary Stephen Chu claims that his panel studying the safety and environmental dangers of natural gas hydraulic fracturing is "diverse" and "respected."
Read MoreThe Obama administration panel named May 5 to study hydraulic fracturing, a natural gas drilling technique that injects thousands of gallons of chemical-laced water into the ground, is dominated by oil and gas industry professionals.
Read MoreApril was a busy month for the natural gas industry in Pennsylvania, especially for one company in particular - Chesapeake Energy Corporation. And that's saying a lot for one of the country's most active natural gas drilling companies.
Read MoreThe Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act, first introduced in 2009 and dropped in the hopper Tuesday (March 15) by Reps. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), Jared Polis (D-Colo.) and Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.) and Senator Bob Casey (D- Pa.), would require oil and gas drillers to obtain a permit under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act before they engage in the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing.
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The boom in natural gas drilling across the United States has spawned well-warranted fears that the fluids and chemicals used to free the gas from surrounding rock could pose a risk to drinking water supplies that tens of millions depend on.
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