The Honorable Legislator

Address
Dear Legislator:
I am writing to you because I am concerned about the current state of hydraulic fracturing legislation in the
United States. It is the responsibility of the United States Government to regulate a practice that has so far been severely
under regulated. The thousands of people who live near fracking wells have not consented to being endangered by noxious
chemicals such as benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene. Yet, they are put at risk everyday just because they have the
misfortune to live near hydraulic fracturing facilities. Additionally, fracking has been associated with a dramatic increase
in earthquakes in Oklahoma, and has the potential to cause more earthquakes in other areas of the nation; areas that, like
Oklahoma, have never experienced earthquakes before and which could be put at risk of experiencing an unnatural
disaster for which they are not prepared. The threat of fracking is very real and very pressing. Fracking needs to be dealt
with immediately, before it expands into a bigger problem than it already is. We need to begin regulating fracking and we
need to do it now.
The first step to regulating hydraulic fracturing is to fix the loopholes that keep fracking unregulated. Hydraulic
fracturing is currently exempt from six different federal environmental acts, the Clean Air Act of 1963, the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Clean Water Act of 1972, the Safe Water Drinking Act of 1974, the Resource
Conservation And Recovery Act of 1976, and the Energy Policy Act of 2005. These acts were put in place to protect the
public from the dangers posed by uncontrolled industrial development. By making fracking exempt from these laws we
are spitting in the face of the people these laws are intended to protect. This state of affairs is unacceptable; fracking has
proven to be equally or more dangerous than other polluting practices currently regulated by the United States
Government. It is imperative that these loopholes be removed immediately in order for fracking to be properly regulated
like any other dangerous, polluting, industrial operation.
Secondly, fracking needs specific regulation just like any other industry. The current lack of fracking-specific
legislation, or any regulating body, is distressing. Although oil and gas regulation is usually handled on a state by state
basis, the federal government needs to take the lead on this new and constantly developing issue before it is allowed to get
out of hand.
Thank you for considering these important issues. I hope that you will take a closer look at the governments
policies regarding fracking and take action to protect the citizens of the United States and the environment that we all
share.
Sincerely,

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Your Name