Oil or water?

If you spill a cup of coffee, or take your dog for a walk, no one gets too excited. Leaks and spills are words used to describe common events. Crude oil pipeline leaks go undetected by pressure sensors and remote control centers. Massive toxic spills near rivers and water are deadly.

What is more important than water?

Stephen Lee, Diamond Pipeline’s project manager, in his rebuttal testimony before the Public Service Commission failed to answer the most important question of the hearing. He said, “That answer may depend on who you ask when selecting a pipeline route. Mr. Lester might very well say, nothing, but Native American tribes may respond that burial grounds and sacred artifacts are more important than a supplemental water source.” Lee danced around the question and showed complete ignorance. John Lester, Clarksville County Water General Manager, is responsible for a 16 million gallon per day water treatment facility and a 2.5 mgd wastewater treatment facility. Lester knows water. Diamond doesn’t understand why Clarksville is concerned with crude oil massive spills.

Tap water quality

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has strict regulations that limit amounts of contaminants in the water provided by public water systems, to assure tap water is safe to drink. The EPA protects public health, but is at high risk.

Oil pipelines are deadly

Oil spills are chemical warfare, a common occurrence with pipelines. At 200,000 barrels per day, Diamond spills would be massive, leaking 350,000 gallons per hour. Last Friday, Plains All-American had another spill in Loyal, Okla. The Buffalo Pipeline spilled 20,000 gallons of oil on farmland and Cooper Creek, which feeds into the Cimarron River. Cleaning crews wearing yellow suits showed up with plastic bags, buckets, and pigs. Pigs are absorbent temporary floating barriers used to contain oil spills on water, long “socks” filled with fluff – like disposable diapers. PAA crews attempted to clean spills by hand, but the oil spilled on the field is absorbed by the soil. Cleanup crews and yellow suits are just for show. Where do the 20,000 gallons of oil go?

How much water should you drink per day?

Doctors recommend eight eight-ounce glasses of clean water per day. Don’t wait to feel thirsty. Coffee, sodas, and other drinks don’t count – these liquids are diuretics, increasing the need for water. People run on water. Small amounts of dehydration negatively affect your mood, attention, memory, and motor coordination. Before enduring rising sea levels, Arkansans will face the threat of hot weather, heat stress, and a lack of clean water.

What is in the water?

People near Norman, Okla., know not to drink tap water, they drink bottled water. Chromium 6 is carcinogenic and high concentrations are related to wastewater fracking. Imagine the expense of cooking and bathing with bottled water. The negative impact on wildlife and pets is unacceptable.

Lead is a potent neurotoxin. Children absorb as much as 90 percent more lead into their bodies than adults. Lead can cause severe health impacts – including anemia, kidney disease, abnormal brain function and even death.

Taking water out of the water-cycle

Forests store and filter rainwater flowing slowly to streams and rivers. The water you drink today has been around from Day One, and as long as we have healthy forests, the cycle of water is maintained.

Fracking is an unethical way to use millions of gallons of fresh water. Unlike conventional oil fields, fracking wells in shale plays have a short life and more wells are required. Fracking is a low-tech, brute-force technology. To keep oil flowing, frackers are increasing the amount of frac sand and fracking water.

Along with crude oil, millions of gallons of underground water are extracted by fracking. Wastewater is the total amount of water coming out of the wellhead. Toxic wastewater is then injected into storage wells, causing earthquakes in Cushing, Oklahoma.

Dr. Luis Contreras