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Hydraulic Fracturing FAQs

What about the jobs created by fracking?

The jobs created by fracking are not the kind of quality jobs American workers deserve. They are dangerous, exposing workers to chemicals whose long-term impacts on human health are yet unknown. And there just aren't that many jobs to be had, especially when compared to the plentiful and sustainable jobs available in the renewable power and energy efficiency sectors.

Consider these statistics:

  • Job creation in energy efficiency is 2.5 times to four times - for building retrofits and mass transit, respectively - larger than that for oil and natural gas.
  • For renewable energy, the job creation ranges between 2.5 times (wind) to three times (3) more than that for oil and gas.

    • In contrast:

  • According to a recent New York Times article, jobs in the oil and gas industry are seven times more likely to be fatal than the U.S. average.

    • Josh Fox is currently conducting an investigation into worker safety and chemical risk. He has interviewed many workers who have been asked to clean drill sites, transport radioactive and carcinogenic chemicals, steam clean the inside of condensate tanks which contain harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and other chemicals and have been told to do so with no safety equipment. Many workers have been harmed and made ill to the point to which they can no longer function normally and have been fired or quit without health insurance.

    A bill to address worker safety, drafted by State Senator Tony Avella of New York, dubbed "CJ's Law" in honor of CJ Bevins, a rig worker killed by an unsafe site in New York State, currently has more than 30 co-sponsors and is moving through the NY State Senate.

     

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