Frackopoly: The Battle for the Future of Energy and the Environment

"The definitive story on how big oil and gas corporations captured our political system . . . and the growing grassroots movement to retake our democracy" (Mark Ruffalo).

Over the past decade a new and controversial energy extraction method known as hydraulic fracturing, commonly referred to as fracking, has rocketed to the forefront of US energy production. With fracking, millions of gallons of water, dangerous chemicals, and sand are injected under high pressure deep into the earth, fracturing hard rock to release oil and gas.

Wenonah Hauter, one of the nation's leading public interest advocates, argues that the rush to fracking is dangerous to the environment and treacherous to human health. Frackopoly describes how the fracking industry began; the technologies that make it possible; and the destruction and poisoning of clean water sources with the release of harmful radiation from deep inside shale deposits, creating what the author calls "sacrifice zones" across the American landscape.

The book also examines the powerful interests that have supported fracking, including leading environmental groups, and offers a thorough debunking of its supposed economic benefits. With a wealth of new data, Frackopoly is an essential and riveting read for anyone interested in protecting the environment and ensuring a healthy and sustainable future for all Americans.

"A passionate history and critique of the energy industry, from Standard Oil to Enron . . . . A] journalistic expos of fracking outrages in which aggressive entrepreneurs in pursuit of profits wreak havoc on the land and poison the water." --Kirkus Reviews

"A truly powerful manifesto about one of the greatest environmental fights on our planet today--from one of its greatest champions " --Bill McKibben, environmentalist and author of Oil and Honey

Author: Wenonah Hauter
Publisher: New Press
Published: 06/07/2016
Pages: 384
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.50lbs
Size: 9.30h x 6.10w x 1.30d
ISBN: 9781620970072


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 05/15/2016
Choice 10/01/2016

About the Author
Wenonah Hauter is the executive director of Food & Water Watch, a D.C.-based watchdog organization focused on corporate and government accountability relating to food, water, and fishing. She has worked and written extensively on food, water, energy, and environmental issues at the national, state, and local levels. She owns a working farm in The Plains, Virginia.