Poll shows most Ohioans think fracking should be halted

Poll shows most Ohioans think fracking should be halted

COLUMBUS

A new poll shows that Ohioans are divided when it comes to fracking in

the Buckeye State.

A Quinnipiac University poll shows that 43 percent of polled Ohioans

think the practice, which involves blasting a mix of water, chemicals

and sand into shale rocks thousands of feet below the ground to unlock

natural gas and oil, will have a detrimental effect on the

environment.

Forty percent said they don’t know if the process will affect the

environment at all; 16 percent said it will not harm the ecosystem.

A majority of Ohioans think the fracking process should be halted,

however, until further studies determine its true economic impact.

Among Ohioans, 72 percent think the process should be temporarily

halted; 23 percent oppose a moratorium.

Vertical fracking has been commonplace for decades; there are tens of

thousands of vertically-fracked wells throughout Ohio.

Horizontal fracking, which allows for greater natural resources

extraction, has taken off in recent years thanks to the prospects of

the Utica and Marcellus shales.

Many Ohioans, however, lack any knowledge of the fracking process,

according to the poll.

Forty percent of respondents have not “heard or read anything” about fracking.