NC Hydrofracking and EJ

NCEJN and its partners are speaking out for communities of color and low income communities on fracking in North Carolina. Fracking, also known as hydraulic fracturing, is the process of extracting natural gas by fracturing rock using pressurized liquid. In addition to potential harm to drinking water, the community disruption that comes along with the process can severely impact vulnerable communities.

In April of 2013, we provided information (pdf) to the EPA on the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on low-income communities and communities of color in North Carolina. This followed a 2012 Title VI complaint (pdf) to the EPA’s Office of Civil Rights by our partners Haw Riverkeeper and West End Revitalization Association regarding North Carolina’s failure to consider disproportionate impacts to communities of color in its exploratory study [60.82 MB (pdf)] on fracking for natural gas in the state.

Study: Race Poverty and Hydraulic Fracturing in North Carolina (doc)