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Majority of Canadians want freeze on frackin: poll

Tuesday, Feb 14, 2012 03:00 am | JOHN GLEESON

Almost two-thirds of Canadians surveyed last month for an Environics Research poll support a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing – or fracking – until the federal government conducts environmental reviews of the practice.

The poll, commissioned by the Council of Canadians, found that 62 per cent of Canadians are in favour of a moratorium, the citizens’ advocacy group announced last week.

Federal studies on fracking are expected to be completed within two years and the council says the “lack of strict, consistent regulation” of the practice makes the moratorium necessary.

“Fracking for unconventional gas is rapidly expanding in almost every province across Canada,” the council said in a press release. “In addition to making local water flammable due to methane pollution, there have been numerous occasions of earthquakes near fracking sites. Fracking wastewater at numerous sites in the U.S. is too radioactive for water treatment plants to cope with safely.”

The council opposes fracking because of “its high water use, its high greenhouse gas emissions, its impacts on human health, the disruption it causes to wildlife, and the danger it poses to groundwater and local drinking water,” Emma Lui, the council’s water campaigner, said in the release.

“The recent announcement of voluntary ‘guiding principles’ confirms the fracking industry is worried about the growing opposition. But these voluntary guidelines set by industry are classic greenwashing,” Lui said.

Fracking involves the injection of water and chemicals underground at high pressure to create fractures in the underlying rock formations to extract the trapped gas and oil.

The council has launched a “Fracker Tracker,” a web-map designed to “track fracking threats across the country,” and is urging citizens to sign a petition to stop fracking at www.canadians.org/fracking.

The Environics Research poll was conducted by telephone from Jan. 5-15 among a random sample of 2,000 Canadians, equally split between men and women.

Last month, the Alberta Surface Rights Group called for the provincial government to impose a moratorium on fracking after a well blowout occurred on Jan. 13 near Glennifer Lake, about 25 kilometres west of Innisfail.

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