B.C. is in extreme drought: We must protect freshwater from toxic fracking

While most of the province is facing extreme drought, the B.C. government is still allowing the fracking industry to pollute billions of litres of freshwater in the province – putting communities in harm’s way.

As shown in our latest report ^[1], there is *no way* to frack without poisoning huge amounts of water, and there is no way to clean up or dispose of the wastewater without putting communities and the environment at risk.

The long term solution is clear: we have to phase out fracking (as many provinces and states around North America are already doing!).

But in the meantime, we must pressure the B.C. government to urgently update our outdated regulations and protect the people and clean water sources being threatened by fracking right now.

Will you send the Premier and key members of the cabinet a copy of our Fracking and freshwater report, and pressure them to act now to protect freshwater and communities from toxic fracking chemicals?

^[1] Fracking and freshwater, Stand.earth, Dec 1 2022

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Premier

David

Eby

B.C. NDP

The Honourable

George

Heyman

BC NDP

Minister

Nathan

Cullen

B.C. NDP

The Honourable

Josie

Osborne

BC NDP

Minister

Bowinn

BC NDP

Dear {contact_data~salutation} {contact_data~lastName},

My name is {user_data~First Name} {user_data~Last Name}, and I am a B.C. resident. I’m writing today to share my concerns about the harmful impact that fracking is having on billions of litres of freshwater in B.C., and to urge you to act now to protect the communities and water sources at risk.

Stand.earth’s new report, ‘Fracking with Freshwater,’ clearly outlines how fracking is impacting freshwater sources and explains what your government can do to address that. Please read it here: https://stand.earth/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Fracking-water-report-pdf.pdf

I was outraged to learn that oil and gas is the only industry in B.C. that is permitted to extract fresh water, contaminate it, and then dispose of it untreated, removing it permanently from the water cycle.

The Stand.earth report raises concerns that this toxic wastewater could be leaking into groundwater aquifers, with very serious implications for local communities. But the government in B.C. doesn’t even require testing of the aquifer in order to monitor these impacts – an absurd oversight.

To address these and other concerns, I ask that you do everything in your power to:
1. Require the treatment and increased reuse of fracking wastewater to reduce the amount of freshwater used in the process;
2. Improve standards for disposal wells and begin baseline and ongoing testing of water systems impacted by oil and gas;
3. End special treatment for oil and gas by returning the power to issue water licence and permits for the industry to the Water Stewardship Branch; and
4. Charge fracking companies a price for water high enough to encourage the conservation of freshwater.

There’s no reason not to act now: all of these recommendations draw on existing technology and regulations already being used in other jurisdictions.

I look forward to hearing your impressions of this report, and to learn more about your stance on fracking and its impact on communities and freshwater in B.C.

Thank you for your time,
{user_data~First Name} {user_data~Last Name}
{user_data~Zip or Postal Code}

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