The Faces of Dimock

Dimock, Pa, was the scene of contaminated wells. PA DEP ruled that the contamination was most likely due to nearby gas well drilling by Cabot. Here is a photo essay, poignant and compelling, which is a must see. Be sure to click on the captions link so that you can read them as you look at the pictures.

Here is the link.

Photographs by Abrahm Lustgarten, ProPublica - April 26, 2009
Pat Farnelli, top left, Ronald Carter, bottom left, Richard Seymour, top right, and Norma Fiorentino, bottom right, live in Dimock, Pa. A year after Cabot Oil & Gas landmen knocked on their doors to sign drilling leases, they are finding that their drinking water now contains methane, the largest component of natural gas.

Here is the article to read if you want to find out more about what happened in Dimock.
And here is another related ProPublica article for those of you who want to read "Natural Gas Politics." Here is a synopsis of that article:

"Four years after Vice President Dick Cheney spearheaded a massive energy bill that exempted natural gas drilling from federal clean water laws, Congress is having second thoughts about the environmental dangers posed by the burgeoning industry. With growing evidence that the drilling can damage water supplies, Democratic leaders in Congress are circulating legislation that would repeal the extraordinary exemption and for the first time require companies to disclose all chemicals used in the key drilling process, called hydraulic fracturing. The proposed legislation has already stirred sharp debate."

Thanks to ProPublica and author Abrahm Lustgarten for this excellent piece.

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