2014 GA Declarations: Fracking

A declaration by ChobentĂș Aragonesista to the 2014 EFAY General Assembly held in Compostela, Galiza.

The "fracking" technology consists of the gas extraction from unconventional deposits by the injection of water mixed with chemical substances. Experts warn that some of the chemical substances used for it are toxic and carcinogenic. The technology is used in slightly porous and permeable soils, which significantly increases the environmental costs. Unfortunately, fracking is a rising technology.

One of the main problems of fracking is the high quantity of water required, about 15000 cubic metres per gas extraction. The addition of chemical additives, some of them toxic or carcinogenic, during the process of hydraulic fracture contaminates aquifers and pollutes the air, putting public health at risk. The probability of earthquakes increases in the areas where gas extraction takes place. In addition, the environmental impact is large because of the need of access to huge areas of land. Each gas well has a lifespan of five to seven years, so it is necessary to dig new gas wells all the time. The technology of fracking is very expensive, it causes serious environmental effects, problems of health, bringing abundant economic  benefits to the companies, but not to the territory.

Today, applications have been made to eleven percent of the territory of. Especially affected are the Pyrenees and the Iberian System. In the Plenary session of the Parliament of Aragon of November 2012, Chunta Aragonesista obtained a unanimous decision declaring that the aggressive technology of hydraulic fracture for the extraction of hydrocarbons, or fracking, should not be used in Aragon, being the first parliament of the State to do so.

As we live in a democracy, the Aragonese Government must respect the decisions of the legislative chamber. Therefore, the Government should enforce the decision of the Aragonese Parliament.

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