6/18/14 - Residents of Conway Township have been telling officials for months that the local fracking operation stinks, but last night they meant it more literally than usual. Several residents spoke up at yesterdayâs meeting of the township board, saying a powerful and offensive odor had descended on their homes Friday as a result of the fracking operation. Fracking, short for hydraulic fracturing, is a process by which water, sand, and chemicals are pumped underground at high pressure to break apart rocks containing oil and natural gas, which can then be collected. It is controversial in large part because of the hundreds of different chemicals that might be used in their process, which some claim could cause long-term harm to the health of residents and the environment. Last night, residents told the township board that a noxious odor came from the Conway fracking site, stinging their eyes and throats as well as sending them into a panic. However, by the time a representative from the Department of Environmental Quality could make it to their homes, it had largely dissipated. Residents say the smell was hydrogen sulfide, a toxic gas, but Supervisor Mike Rife says safety officials claim the smell came from an acidic gel used in the fracking process. However, residents both in the audience and on the board expressed frustration with the DEQ during the meeting, and the board unanimously approved a resolution to submit Freedom of Information Act requests for the results of any emission tests at the site conducted by the DEQ, with enforcement action possible if they exceeded legal limits. Residents say they are in support of this measure. (TD)
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