House investigates hydraulic fracturing

An oil and gas drilling technique that is becoming more widespread is drawing scrutiny from lawmakers concerned that it may pose a hazard to human health by tainting drinking water and harming the environment.

Top Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee sent letters Feb. 18 to eight oil and gas companies seeking more information about chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing, also known as “fracking.” The process injects vast quantities of water, sand and chemicals underground to force open channels in sand and rock formations so that oil and natural gas will flow.

Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., the panel’s chairman, said hydraulic fracturing could help unlock vast supplies of domestic natural gas once thought unattainable, but he added that lawmakers need to weigh the risks.

Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., who chairs an energy subcommittee, worked with Waxman last year on a landmark bill to impose limits on climate-changing greenhouse gases. Markey said natural gas can play an important role in developing so-called clean energy, but must be obtained in a way that does not harm the environment.

Fracking has been around for decades and has come under increasing scrutiny as drilling crews flock to the Marcellus Shale, a rock bed the size of Greece that lies about 6,000 feet beneath New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio. The technique also is used in Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico and other Western states.

Waxman and Markey said they hope to find more information on some of the chemicals used in the process, including benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene.

A 2004 study by the Environmental Protection Agency said there was no evidence that fracking threatens drinking water. Critics, including a veteran engineer in the regional EPA office in Denver, argued that the report’s methodology was flawed.

A provision in the 2005 energy bill that prevented the EPA from regulating fracking was called the “Halliburton loophole” by foes. Halliburton Co., an oilfield services company, pioneered hydraulic fracturing.

Houston-based Halliburton was among those receiving letters Feb. 18, along with several other large hydraulic fracking companies, including BJ Services Co. and Schlumberger, both of Houston.

—The Associated Press