All FracTracker Articles

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Take Action in Support of No New Leases

The federal government is accepting comments on a 5-Year Offshore Oil and Gas Lease Program. We need your voice to join in solidarity with communities in the Gulf and the Arctic and call for no new leases.
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Detroit residents stand in front of a Marathon Oil refinery in southwest Detroit, MI, 2020. Photo by Ted Auch.

Introducing FracTracker’s Newest Board Member: Theresa Landrum

FracTracker is honored to welcome Theresa Landrum as the newest member of our Board of Directors.
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Abandoned Infrastructure in Keene, North Dakota. Photo by David Nix.

Carbon Capture and Storage: Developments in the Law of Pore Space in North Dakota

The interplay between the rights of the owner of the surface estate and the rights of the mineral estate have recently become the subject of both legislation and litigation as the use of subsurface pore space by various energy industries has developed at an increasingly rapid pace in North Dakota.
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Carbon Capture and Storage: Industry Connections and Community Impacts

Industries that stand to capitalize on the proliferation of carbon capture and storage are aggressively pursuing its development despite its wide-ranging risks and diminishing returns for communities across the U.S.
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ExxonMobil LaBarge CCUS Facility

Carbon Capture and Storage: Fact or Fiction?

Extractive industry uses propaganda to protect private profits at the expense of the public interest. According to the evidence, there is reason to believe that carbon capture and storage (CCS) is one such scheme.
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Pipeline Right-of-Ways: Making the Connection between Forest Fragmentation and the Spread of Lyme Disease in Southwestern Pennsylvania

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While many ecological factors may contribute to the spread of Lyme disease, two of the most significant factors are believed to be climate change and forest fragmentation. This study assesses the role that different pipeline construction proxies play in the change in average annual Lyme disease rate in Pennsylvania counties from 2001 to 2019.
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FracTracker Finds Widespread Hydrocarbon Emissions from Active & Idle Oil and Gas Wells and Infrastructure in California

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FracTracker inspections of oil and gas infrastructure using an optical gas imaging camera found numerous sources of uncontrolled emissions in three California counties.
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California Regulators Approve More Oil Well Permits Amid a Crisis of Leaking Oil Wells that Should be Plugged

FracTracker’s in-the-field inspections and updated analysis of CalGEM permit data shows that California’s regulatory practices and permitting policies risk exposing frontline communities to VOCs from oil and gas well sites.
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New Film Tells Story of Community’s Fight Against Fracking Waste

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"Hellbent," a new documentary slated for release in August 2022, tells the story of a small town in Pennsylvania and a species on the brink of extinction that are unlikely allies in the fight for a clean, livable environment.
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Map of potential carbon capture technology

An Insider Take on the Appalachian Hydrogen & CCUS Conference

Reflections on the Appalachian Hydrogen and Carbon Capture conference, and how companies hope to use new tech to prolong fossil fuel dependence
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Aerial image of Oil Refinery in Ohio

Does Hydrogen Have a Role in our Energy Future?

There has been increasing focus on using hydrogen gas as a fuel, but most hydrogen is currently formed from methane, which could lead to more fracking.
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Brine spreading map

Oil and Gas Brine in Ohio

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A hazardous byproduct of oil & gas operations, called “brine," poses a problem because of its radioactivity and the volumes produced.
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