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Red Deer chapter supports landowners opposed to fracking

Crews clean up near Red Deer after a fracking-related oil spill.


The Council of Canadians Red Deer chapter is opposed to fracking and is supporting landowners trying to stop fracking on their land.


The Alberta Geological Survey estimates there may be 1,291 trillion cubic feet of shale gas and 500 trillion cubic feet of coalbed methane in the province.

As a result, there has been a massive increase fracking. Provincial government statistics show that 1,516 licenses for fracking were issued in 2013, up from 203 in 2012. An estimated 17 million cubic metres of water was used for fracking in 2013.


Council of Canadians campaigner Emma Lui has commented, “There are a growing number of stories from landowners of the impacts fracking is having on drinking water as well as their dairy and cattle farms.”

She highlights, “The Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties passed Resolution 2-13S in the spring of 2013 citing concerns about the impact fracking has on drinking water, changes in land formations, and increased seismic activity.”


And Andrew Nikiforuk notes, “Hydraulic fracturing, a controversial technology that injects fluids into the ground to crack rock containing oil and gas, has contaminated groundwater in Pennsylvania, Colorado, Alberta, Texas and Wyoming. The industry has also caused felt earthquakes in Alberta, British Columbia, Ohio, Texas and Oklahoma.”


The Council of Canadians has also helped to establish the Alberta Fracking Resource & Action Coalition (ABFRAC), a network of organizations and individuals concerned about fracking in their province.


To learn more about ABFRAC, please see their Facebook page here.

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