If your water has been damaged by drilling or fracking...

http://watercontaminationfromfracking.com/?gclid=CLGq3dGsxaICFYv75wodN39sGg (Link)

This site has a lot of information on fracking, and drilling problems and how they affect human life and our environment. I am not usually one to promote a Lawyer or Law Firm, but this group has a lot of good info.



Many citizens in Arkansas lost their water wells in June of 2009, when the Fayetteville Shale project was going hot and heavy. I remember hearing a comment about Citizen Complaints of their water quality when their wells failed, "Well, they didn't have to be regulated by the State when they had their own wells, now the State has no obligation to regulate them."



 I was a newbie at a job that was my perfect fit. I was a Secretary for the Air Enforcement and Compliance Division of a State agency. The division had not had 2 secretaries it needed for several months. Thousands of vital reports, complaints, and possible legal actions had been sitting in piles and boxes in a cubicle and another storage room. It was just what I needed. I love the kind of work others would die from. Repetition, reading Governmenteze Technical reports, gathering information, finding mistakes, reading hundreds of pieces of mail, making sure information was sent out to one of 52 people I answered to.



I was one of those rare birds, the person you get at a Bureaucracy, who knows they are being paid by taxpayer dollars. Cheerful, smart, knows about, and cares about the Environment. Not just there praying for retirement. We do not last long, us nice/helpful Government Employees. The Lemmings have a violent streak that will come out if you are caring and concerned. "If you are nice to them when you answer the phone, you will have to waste a lot of time on them..." "Do Not Ask them if you can Help Them!"



Anyway, I started there at the end of 2007. I had been on a "mission for God" for the prior 18 months. Underemployed, helpless and being held captive by a mean little town. I was so glad to have gotten this job, I didn't care that my wages were low, I was getting benefits and I could serve the Public. I have an Environmental Background that is perfect for Environmental Preservation and Protection. That's why I got hired...



March of 2008, I already have a reputation with the other secretaries who "don't handle that". Agency wide, with a staff of over 400. I was sent Every Complaint call that came into the Agency. We were Air. Air Compliance and Enforcement. Hello! I am a frickin' secretary, and this man from Texas calls in.



This is a 1).Water, 2).Waste Water, 3).Solid Waste and maybe 4).Air. I had this one high strung that worked in the cubical next to me, and you can hear a fart a block away, she's saying, "You can't take a call from Texas, we don't do water complaints..."  The man on the phone had something important to report, and my good conscience made me act with due diligence.



I had never heard of fracking before that day. I had no reason to form any opinion about it. Most of my experience with wells and drilling has been positive. I love drinking beer with Roughnecks, they are fun! The best deer hunting used to be up near the "gas well pads", I have done taxes for people who get Oil and Gas Well Royalties, this was a good thing for them. I have kinfolks that were lucky to be asked to take a well on their property. At first, a little mess, a couple of trees thinned out, and a nice access road to your own property. There was some disruption in the woods, but after awhile, the wildlife acclimates to it, all good.



 Fracking = Not Good.



This man was passionate, because he was dying. [High strung, in the next cube..."that is OSHA, not us!"]. Honestly, I did not ask for this call, but I got it. My supervisor, who is finally able to focus on the ruckus happening in my cubical, comes down. I put the gentleman on hold. Yes, we take a call from anyone, anywhere. If it is regarding an Environmental Complaint take it. We will forward it to another agency if needed. OK, back to the Complainant...this is how it is in Government, this is why shit takes so long to get solved. The cube neighbor causing the ruckus has no business whatsoever with my call...anyway. Mr. Z calls in wants to send a warning to our State, that the frackers were coming our way. Fracking, Frack, Frac was not in our vocabulary database in March of 2008.



 He did sound a little crazy at first, but having been there myself, I listened. When he finally realized he found someone who would listen, he calmed down and made perfect sense and sent verification for every accusation he made. Texas Dept of Environmental Quality sent me proof of their illegal operation. In Texas, the frackers had been operating un-permitted for some years. Texas filed several legal suits against them to come in and get registered and permitted. They never did. They moved on up to another Region 6 State. The man is/was dying from breathing the silica and fracking fluid. This man even had an article published in the our State Liberal paper. The Fayetteville Shale was set in clay, it would be done.



Thank you for everything you do. Thank you for doing what you can to save the environment. Thank you for caring enough to act.