Pets are being boarded at local kennels, and the expenses incurred will presumably be reimbursed by Exco Operating Company. Residents who choose to remain in their homes are being cautioned against using well water for any reason and to avoid smoking and open flames.
An update on Monday, April 20, warned residents:
though unlikely, the water from your well may have the potential of being flammable. Do not drink or use any well water and do not give well water to your pets. You are also advised not to turn on any faucets, flush the toilets, or smoke cigars, pipes or cigarettes.Those who did not have a place to go were asked to report immediately to the Hilton-Shreveport Convention Center where representatives would be located to assist them.
Two of the gas wells in the affected area were filled with cement, but the Caddo Sheriff said that plans were in place for those wells to be uncapped on Tuesday morning and flared to burn off excess gas.
The Wilcox Aquifer, the main water supply for Caddo Parish residents outside the Shreveport city limits, was the focus of concern as to the extent of contamination.
Click here to read the full article from KSLA News 12, Shreveport, LA.
Can you imagine living like this?
More on this incident from ProPublica writer Abraham Lustgarten here.
Perhaps if more people took the time to imagine living with the increasingly likely realities that are radically changing people's worlds and lives, they would join the efforts to demand responsible action from both the gas industry and our government.
ReplyDeleteWrite letters, sign petitons, stand up and be counted in favor of a moratorium on shale gas drilling in America, until such time as it can be demonstrated to be done safely, without threat of irrevocable contamination of our water resources, or toxic pollution of our air and land. And, without the overwhelming disruption to lives once thought to be secured.
Most likely most folks had no idea of the downside of signing a lease. Certainly the encouraging landmen weren't going to paint the dark picture emerging all across our country, wherever gas drilling is taking place.
So yes! Let's all take a minute to imagine being evacuated so we don't explode, or watching our animals die, or developing strange physical ailments, rashes and cancers... we don't even have to imagine it! As drilling makes inroads into the fabric of our lives, we can read about how it's happening to 'others' every day!
DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY!
Walking in the shoes of these local people who are so affected by gas drilling is a good exercise, even if it is only through our imaginations. These people are really hidden from view and have no voice.
ReplyDelete