When J.B. Pritzker ran for governor in Illinois, he ran on a platform of clean energy and said he opposed fracking. 350 Chicago is working in conjunction with Food & Water Watch and the Illinois Coalition Against Fracking to press Governor Pritzker to ban all fracking projects — big and small — across the state of Illinois.
Join us in sending a message to Governor Pritzker urging him to ban fracking in Illinois.
Hydraulic fracturing, commonly knows as "fracking", is a dangerous process for extracting oil and gas from deep underground. To collect these deep pockets of oil and gas, fracking companies first drill a well and then inject millions of gallons of water, sand, and toxic chemicals at extreme pressures in order to fracture rock, thereby releasing the oil and gas deposits.
Fracking is bad for Illinois because...
- it consumes local water supplies, leaving farmers with less
- it produces massive amounts of toxic and even radioactive waste
- it causes thousands of accidents, leaks, and spills
- it pumps hazardous pollutants into the air
- it puts important groundwater sources at risk for generations
- it threatens the climate on which we all depend
Fracking is particularly concerning when it comes to climate: the fracking process releases large amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that scientists estimate is responsible for about 25% of current global warming. A recent mysterious spike in global methane levels, which is putting climate goals at risk, may be in part due to U.S. fracking operations. And needless to say, we continue to see ever increasing climate-related devastation, from extreme weather to record flooding to more pervasive and uncontrollable wildfires. We simply can't afford to allow Big Oil & Gas companies to keep drilling, making all of these problems even worse.
Last year, Governor Pritzker signed an executive order committing to the principles of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, stating "all residents of the State of Illinois deserve clean air, clean water, and a safe environment where their communities can thrive."
We now need to hold Governor Pritzker accountable to that executive order and his campaign promises.
If Governor Pritzker takes action, Illinois would join New York, Maryland, Vermont, and Washington in banning fracking statewide.
Tell Governor Pritzker he must ban fracking to protect our environment and public health today.
Team 350 Chicago
