League of Women Voters of the Grand Traverse Area

An educational program on hydraulic fracturing, commonly known as “fracking,” will be presented by the League of Women Voters Grand Traverse Area on Wednesday, February 22, 2012, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm at the Traverse Area District Library, 610 Woodmere in Traverse City.

The perspectives of the oil and gas industry, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, and a regional group opposed to fracking will be presented. Thad Shumway of North Bay Energy in Traverse City, Bob Versical of the Cadillac District Office of MDEQ, and Ellis Boal of Ban Michigan Fracking will be the speakers.

Fracking is a process used in oil and gas wells to extract either or both of these natural resources. The procedure involves pumping water, sand and chemicals into a well and down the casing or tubing under high pressure. As the mixture is forced through perforations in the well casing into the surrounding rock, the pressure causes the rock to fracture, creating additional fissures. The fractures
are then propped open with pumped sand, which enables either gas or oil, or both, to flow from tight, or low permeability rock, to the well.

Public and industry concerns about fracking focus on five issues: (1) migration of gas or fracture fluids, (2) the quantity of water required, (3) management of the used water, (4) surface spills, and (5) identification and disclosure of chemical additives. The audience will learn about these issues and have an opportunity to ask questions of the presenters.

The League of Women Voters, a non-partisan political organization,
encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy. Membership is open to all American citizens, male and female, who are eighteen years of age or older.

# # #