Researcher warns on fracking dangers
FRACKING will not only damage the economy of the Karoo, it will also ruin the charm the picturesque area is known for, leading to a tourism slump that could last for years.
This warning was sounded by researcher David Fig who presented his report, titled “The Question of Fracking”, to activists in Port Elizabeth yesterday. Commissioned by citizen groups Groundwork, Southern Cape Land Committee and Milieudefensi (Friends of the Earth Netherlands), the report was released last week.
Hydraulic fracturing, commonly called fracking, is the process of drilling and injecting fluid into the ground at a high pressure in order to fracture shale rock to release the natural gas inside.
Fig’s report includes details on how fracking will change the Karoo socially, economically and environmentally.
He said a worst-case scenario for Karoo towns was if the shale gas industry came in with no control. This would mess up the water supply, resulting in job losses in farming and tourism.
“They can only frack a well so many times. Then they will move to another part of the Karoo, so there will be a boom and bust effect all throughout the economy of the Karoo, which is very fragile anyway.”
He said because of the pollution that came with drilling, fracking could affect the agriculture industry in towns and cause the uniqueness of the famous Karoo lamb to be lost.
“The farmers in the area have said they know that farming and fracking cannot go together,” Fig said.
“The Karoo is known for the quality of its lamb and sheep. But the quality of that lamb is linked to the quality of the environment and the lack of pollution in the area. So if fracking is allowed, the lamb will lose its flavour and one of the key economic drivers in the area will be threatened.”
In his report, Fig said studies done on the impact of fracking in the area did not deal with the prospects of job loss due to shale gas mining.
“If fracking pollutes the soil, air and water of the Karoo, it will have an impact on the number of farming enterprises that will stay in business. Tourism will be adversely affected, since people are not keen to travel in areas where pollution is a problem.
“Some farmers in the Karoo believe that farming and fracking will be incompatible with one another. If fracking is introduced, farming will suffer. If there are farm closures, job losses will happen.”
On the health issue, he said workers in the Karoo needed to be informed of the risks posed by the fracking indus- try. “The government should undertake a baseline health study of the affected districts prior to the beginning of fracking. It will be against this baseline study that future contracting of fracking-related diseases can be measured.
“This is an external cost the government imposed on it by the fracking industry, which should be held liable for its costs, and for those of followup studies. The industry should also be held liable for the costs of treatment of any victims of provable frackingrelated diseases.”
He said he had done the report, which he started in 2012, in order to give people tangible facts they could refer to in the fight against fracking.
Ubuntu Environmental Trust chairman Moki Cekisani said the information needed to be made available to people in the Karoo townships.
Hylke Hekkenberg, of the Shale Gas Free Noordoostpolder citizen group from the Netherlands, said it was time for people in the Eastern Cape to stand up against fracking.
“In our home, they also want to do shale gas mining, and we are fighting against it. We will be visiting Karoo towns to warn people about the effects of fracking so they can have proper information to fight it.”
Cautious approach to fracking needed:
UNEARTHED