As I write, the temperature outside is 91 degrees Fahrenheit, nowhere near the worst to be expected this summer. According to data from the Climate Impact Lab, there is now an average of 105 days at or above 90 degrees in Arlington, compared with 93 days within the same temperature range when I was born in 1991. This change in temperature is due in no small part to fracking, which has a ubiquitous presence in our North Texas city. As the climate continues to warm, our local government continues to expand oil and gas production—in a city where over a hundred wells already exist.
The issue of fracking is a common one at Arlington City Council meetings, where it continues to be approved despite public outcry and numerous health risks associated with extraction. Fracking is accelerating the climate crisis drastically. It is a significant producer of methane—a greenhouse gas more potent at trapping heat than carbon dioxide—which scientists say is responsible for 20-30 percent of all warming to date. In addition to fueling the climate crisis, fracking has been linked to a variety of health issues. According to a 2023 assessment, the air pollution from oil and gas extraction operations in 2016 was responsible for $77 billion in health impacts, which included: 410,000 asthma attacks; 2,200 new cases of childhood asthma; and 7,500 excess deaths. Beyond this national figure, a report from the environmental group Livable Arlington has documented fracking pollution at 85 local sites.
The group Physicians for Social Responsibility has investigated the issue in great depth and came to the following conclusion in a lengthy report: “Our examination uncovered no evidence that fracking can be practiced in a manner that does not threaten human health directly or without imperiling climate stability upon which human health depends.”
