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Halliburton Loophole Under Study ~ Frack Fluid Safety?
by Frack Check WV: admin 13 Feb '23

13 Feb '23

# [Halliburton Loophole Under Study ~ Frack Fluid Safety?](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/13/halliburton-loophole-under- study-frack-fluid-safety/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/383C8874-11FE-4A73-B183-0E2F378F9665.jpeg)](https:/… content/uploads/2023/02/383C8874-11FE-4A73-B183-0E2F378F9665.jpeg) Vice President Cheney was the oil & gas industry inside government **Outcomes of the Halliburton Loophole: Chemicals Regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act in US Fracking Disclosures, 2014-2021** From an [Article by Vivian Underhill, et. al., Environmental Pollution](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S026974912…, November 8, 2022 Hydraulic fracturing (fracking) has enabled the United States to lead the world in gas and oil production over the past decade; 17.6 million Americans now live within a mile of a fracked oil or gas well. This major expansion in fossil fuel production is possible in part due to the 2005 Energy Policy Act and its “Halliburton Loophole,” which exempts fracking activity from regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). To begin quantifying the environmental and economic impacts of this loophole, this study undertakes an aggregate analysis of chemicals that would otherwise be regulated by SDWA within FracFocus, an industry-sponsored fracking disclosure database. This paper quantifies the total disclosures and total mass of these chemicals used between 2014-2021, examines trends in their use, and investigates which companies most use and supply them. We find that 28 SDWA-regulated chemicals are reported in FracFocus, and 60-80% of all disclosures (depending on year) report at least one SDWA-regulated chemical. Of these, 19,700 disclosures report using SDWA-regulated chemicals in masses that exceed their reportable quantities as defined under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). Finally, while the most common direct-supplier category is “company name not reported,” Halliburton is the second-most named direct supplier of SWDA regulated chemicals. Halliburton is also the supplier most frequently associated with fracks that use SDWA regulated chemicals. These results show the necessity of a more robust and federally mandated disclosure system and suggest the importance of revisiting exemptions such as the Halliburton Loophole. **See access to the full Publication here:** <https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0269749122017663> URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/13/halliburton-loophole-under- study-frack-fluid-safety/>

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Let’s Ban Fracking or Regulate It? The Time is Now to Limit Climate Change!
by Frack Check WV: admin 12 Feb '23

12 Feb '23

# [Let’s Ban Fracking or Regulate It? The Time is Now to Limit Climate Change!](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/13/let%e2%80%99s-ban-fracking- or-regulate-it-the-time-is-now-to-limit-climate-change/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/EB935DA7-7700-4618-B31A-EAEBA2DCDBC8.jpeg)](https:/… content/uploads/2023/02/EB935DA7-7700-4618-B31A-EAEBA2DCDBC8.jpeg) If the US Government will not actually regulate the Oil & Gas Industry, fracking should be banned! **US Department of Energy Releases Report on Economic & National Security Impacts of a Hydraulic Fracturing Ban** From the [Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management](https://www.energy.gov/fecm/office-fossil-energy-and-carbon- management), U.S. DOE, January 14, 2021 Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy delivered a new report to the President on negative impacts of the ill- conceived hydraulic fracturing ban some have proposed. [Economic and National Security Impacts Under a Hydraulic Fracturing Ban](https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2021/01/f82/economic-and- national-security-impacts-under-a-hydraulic-fracturing-ban.pdf) explains why a ban would have far-reaching and severe consequences, including the loss of millions of jobs, price spikes at the gasoline pump and higher electricity costs for all Americans—and the likelihood of increased CO2, SO2, and NOx emissions. A ban would end the U.S. role as the world’s largest oil and natural gas producer and would force the United States to become a net importer of oil and gas once again. It would weaken the Nation’s geopolitical influence and put our national security at risk. “Hydraulic fracturing tapped the great reservoir of America’s natural resources. That technology made the United States the world’s largest oil and natural gas producer, while also creating high-paying jobs and delivering great consumer savings,” said Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy Steven Winberg. “This report to the President details just how devastating the economic and national security impacts of a ban would be. Banning this technology would derail our recovery from recent COVID-related economic disruptions and increase the risk of another recession.” During 2019, U.S. LNG exports helped to reduce the trade deficit and created $9.5 billion in revenue. But it is consumers, in particular, who would bear the impacts of a hydraulic fracturing ban. In recent years, increased domestic oil and natural gas supply has put significant downward pressure on consumer prices for gasoline and natural gas. In 2019, gasoline and diesel prices were 40 percent and 38.3 percent lower, respectively, compared to 2012, and average end-user prices for natural gas fell 24.3 percent in 2019 from 2008 levels. The report shows how consumers would bear the impacts of a hydraulic fracturing ban through higher electricity and natural gas costs. Retail electricity costs would increase by more than $480 billion between 2021 and 2025, and retail natural gas costs would increase by more than $400 billion between 2021 and 2025. And the report estimates how much higher gasoline and diesel costs could go if hydraulic fracturing were banned. Annual average gasoline prices would increase over 100 percent to over $4.20 per gallon in 2022 and 2023, and annual average diesel prices would increase 95 percent to $4.56 per gallon in 2022. Higher prices for gasoline, diesel, and petroleum products would amount to $1.9 trillion in additional, cumulative costs from 2021 to 2025 across all sectors. The shale revolution created by hydraulic fracturing and related technology is also responsible for a well-documented U.S. environmental success record: the reduction of carbon and other emissions to record-low levels. Natural gas is key to that environmental success because it fuels more than one-third of U.S. electric power plants and serves as an important enabler for integrating low- carbon intermittent renewables like wind and solar. “Taking away hydraulic fracturing technology from America’s oil and natural gas industry removes the primary technique needed to efficiently and responsibly extract abundant U.S. energy resources. Without new wells brought online, U.S. natural gas and oil production would rapidly fall, reversing the past decade's energy security gains,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oil and Natural Gas Shawn Bennett. From a national security and foreign policy perspective, significantly curtailing American natural gas and oil production increases global energy dependence on Russia and the member nations of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Currently, the U.S. exports natural gas—mostly in the form of LNG—to 39 countries on five continents. A decrease in LNG and crude oil exports would weaken our geopolitical standing globally and take away an important diplomacy tool. Given the interconnectedness of the global economy, higher energy costs would reverberate across the world, affecting economic growth and the outlook from Asia to Europe. With a weakened American economy, the U.S. would experience a national security setback, becoming reliant, once again, on other nations for its energy needs. The full extent of the economic, environmental and national security impacts of a ban on hydraulic fracturing is detailed in [the report that DOE produced at President’s direction](https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2021/01/f82/economic-and- national-security-impacts-under-a-hydraulic-fracturing-ban.pdf). To learn more about hydraulic fracturing, visit FE’s website. #######+++++++#######+++++++####### **See Also:** [Fracking Threatens America's Air, Water and Climate](https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/fracking/), Center for Biological Diversity ~ Fracking poisons our water, contaminates our air and emits massive greenhouse gas pollution. {+} #######+++++++#######+++++++####### **See Also:** [Fracking Companies Exploiting Halliburton Loophole to Inject Toxic Chemicals,](https://eponline.com/articles/2014/10/23/fracking-companies- exploiting-halliburton-loophole-to-inject-toxic- chemicals.aspx?admgarea=ht.hydraulicfracturing) Environmental Protection Online, October 23, 2014 Despite a federal ban on the use of diesel fuel in hydraulic fracturing without a permit, several oil and gas companies are exploiting a Safe Drinking Water Act loophole pushed through by Halliburton to frack with petroleum-based products containing even more dangerous toxic chemicals than diesel. Investigation finds at least 6 fracking fluids on the market with higher concentrations of benzene (a carcinogen) than diesel fuel, and at least 153 wells fracked with liquids containing ethylbenzene (a probable carcinogen) in 11 states. URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/13/let%e2%80%99s-ban-fracking-or- regulate-it-the-time-is-now-to-limit-climate-change/>

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NEWS UPDATE ~ Coal Cost Crossover 3.0 says “Clean Energy is More Economical”
by Frack Check WV: S. Tom Bond 11 Feb '23

11 Feb '23

# [NEWS UPDATE ~ Coal Cost Crossover 3.0 says “Clean Energy is More Economical”](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/11/news-update-coal-cost- crossover-3-0-says-%e2%80%9cclean-energy-is-more-economical%e2%80%9d/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/FDB08D4F-3EB7-431A-95BF-6D7DF9B188FF-300x115.png)](… content/uploads/2023/02/FDB08D4F-3EB7-431A-95BF-6D7DF9B188FF.png) Data from Clean Technia report of July 2022 **Coal Cost Crossover 3.0: Local renewables plus storage create new economic and reliability opportunities** From the [Coal Cost Crossover 3.0 dated January 28, 2923](https://energyinnovation.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Coal-Cost- Crossover-3.0-One-Pager.pdf) **NEARLY ALL U.S. COAL PLANTS ARE MORE EXPENSIVE THAN NEW CLEAN ENERGY** _Coal powered the United States economy for decades, but that era is fast coming to a close. The cost of new clean energy technologies has plummeted over the past decade while coal costs have stayed flat or risen, creating a “cost crossover” between coal and renewables in 2020 when renewables provided more power to our grid than coal for the first time._ **Our first Coal Cost Crossover report, based on the 2017 coal fleet, found 62 percent of U.S. coal capacity was more expensive to run than to replace with renewables, while our second, based on the 2019 coal fleet, found 72 percent of capacity more expensive than renewables.** **The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) accelerates this coal cost crossover.** First, the IRA extends and expands the investment and production tax credits, significantly reducing wind and solar costs. Second, IRA funding for loan guarantees to refinance fossil fuel power resources and reinvest in new clean energy infrastructure, creates an economic opportunity to pay down coal debt and attract investment in new renewable resources. Our third Coal Cost Crossover report analyzes 2021 costs for 210 coal plants across the country (totaling 220 gigawatts of coal capacity), comparing them to actual costs for solar and wind in 2021, and incorporating the new tax credits. We find 99 percent of plants (209 out of 210) are more expensive to run than replacing their generation capacity with either new solar or new wind. The savings of using renewables would be significant: The cost of either new wind or solar is at least 30 percent cheaper than the cost of running more than three-quarters of existing U.S. coal plants. **LOCAL RENEWABLES CAN DRIVE $589 BILLION INVESTMENT IN COAL COMMUNITIES** The IRA created a bonus “energy communities” tax credit for building projects in areas that have historically depended economically on the fossil fuel industry. To capture the potential of this tax credit to generate new clean energy investment for these communities, we compared the cost of building new wind and solar resources within 30 miles of each coal plant to the cost of running the existing coal plant. **For 199 of the 210 coal plants, local solar replacement is less expensive than existing coal, and for 104 plants, local wind is less expensive. For 89 plants, both local wind and local solar were cheaper than coal, indicating a clean energy portfolio including local wind and solar is a viable replacement option for those plants, while providing additional grid reliability value.** Between solar and wind, our study finds replacing 204 coal plants with new local clean energy would generate up to $589 billion in new investment in energy communities across the country. Local replacement of coal plants with renewables offers several advantages, including preserving tax revenue and creating jobs in energy communities, qualifying projects for IRA-authorized funding and loans, and potentially avoiding the need to build new transmission to connect to the grid by using existing coal plant infrastructure. **PAIRING LOCAL RENEWABLES WITH STORAGE PROVIDES ADDED RELIABILIY** We also evaluated the cost of adding four-hour battery storage with local solar to provide additional reliability value and in some cases, higher market profitability. We find that the potential savings from switching from coal to local solar can finance 137 GW of four-hour battery capacity across the coal fleet, or more than 60 percent of the capacity of all 210 coal plants we studied. While reliability does not necessarily depend on adding storage, adding some amount of storage can help integrate renewables and accelerate clean energy adoption. For more than a third of the coal plants we studied, we find that in addition to replacing the electricity generation with local solar, 80 percent or more of the plant’s capacity can be replaced with four-hour batteries at a combined cost that is still lower than the cost of operating the coal plant. For the remaining coal plants, the percentage of capacity that can be economically replaced is still quite significant: Savings from renewable generation could fund battery storage at more than 50 percent plant capacity at 135 plants. **POLICIES TO SPEED THE COAL TO CLEAN TRANSITION** The economics are clear: Solar and wind offers much cheaper power compared to coal and without compromising the reliability of our electricity system. However, policymakers must act to unlock the cost savings, redevelopment, and human health benefits for coal communities. Several policies can hasten the coal-to-clean transition: • **Regulators should:** o Encourage utilities to utilize IRA financing programs from the Departments of Energy and Agriculture. o Enable competitive resource procurement. o Require reassessment of any utility investment plan, including integrated resource plans and market- based solicitation for renewable supply, completed prior to IRA as renewables costs will be out of date. • **State legislatures and energy offices should** plan and fund a coal community economic transition, where local clean energy resources anchor a more expansive economic transition plan. • **Regulators and system operators should:** o Improve methods to assess reliability and resource adequacy that reflect the reliability value of renewable portfolios and value the reliability attributes of a high-renewable grid. o Update interconnection study rules to leverage existing coal plant interconnection rights to speed grid connection processes for local renewable replacement resources. #######+++++++#######+++++++####### **See Also:** [Most Renewables Now Cheaper Than Cheapest Coal](https://cleantechnica.com/2022/07/21/most-renewables-cheaper-than- cheapest-coal-in-g20/) - CleanTechnica, July 21, 2022 <https://cleantechnica.com/2022/07/21/most-renewables-cheaper-than-cheapest- coal-in-g20/> URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/11/news-update-coal-cost- crossover-3-0-says-%e2%80%9cclean-energy-is-more-economical%e2%80%9d/>

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PUBLIC NOTICE ~ U.S. ARMY CORPS ~ 15 Day Extension of MVP Comment Period
by Frack Check WV: admin 10 Feb '23

10 Feb '23

# [PUBLIC NOTICE ~ U.S. ARMY CORPS ~ 15 Day Extension of MVP Comment Period](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/10/public-notice-u-s-army- corps-15-day-extension-of-mvp-comment-period/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/E6262D77-9F21-4E69-B122-565A76256C00.jpeg)](https:/… content/uploads/2023/02/E6262D77-9F21-4E69-B122-565A76256C00.jpeg) Huntington Branch of US-ACE has responsibility for stream protection **RE: Public Notice No. LRH-2015-00592-GBR, LRP-2015-798, NAO-2015-0898 ~ Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP)** **From** [U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Issuance Date: February 10, 2023 to Closing Date: February 25, 2023](https://www.lrh.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory/Public- Notices/Article/3243440/lrh-2015-00592-gbr-lrp-2015-798-nao-2015-0898/) **STREAMS** : Elk, Gauley, Greenbrier, Roanoke, Blackwater Rivers (Section 10 waters) and other streams **NOTICE OF COMMENT PERIOD EXTENSION:** The United States Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) published on December 12, 2022 for public comment a supplemental Public Notice to Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC’s proposal to discharge dredged and/or fill material into waters of the United States and work in and under navigable waters of the United States associated with the construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline and can be accessed on our website at: [https://www.lrh.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory/Public- Notices/Article/3243440/lrh-2015-00592- gbr- lrp-2015-798-nao-2015-0898/](https://www.lrh.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regula… Notices/Article/3243440/lrh-2015-00592-gbr-lrp-2015-798-nao-2015-0898/) This Public Notice solicits comments related to supplemental information provided by the applicant. The public comment period on this proposal was extended until February 10, 2023 via public notice of December 20, 2022. The public comment period on this proposal is being extended an additional 15 days until February 25, 2023 to allow additional time for review of additional documents being provided for the benefit of public awareness and to inform any further comments on the proposed project. **DESCRIPTION OF THE SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION:** In addition to the supplemental information described in our December 12, 2022 Public Notice (see link above), revised and additional documents are being provided to the public as follows (month of receipt and/or last update of document in parentheses; documents marked with an asterisk (*) contain updated information from that previously provided via public notice, or impact information being presented in a new organizational format): • Summary of Impracticability of Using a Trenchless Crossing for the Blackwater River (original October 2021/updated November 2021); • Riffle and Pool Complexes Avoidance and Minimization Summary (received January 2022); • Mountain Valley Pipeline’s Responses to Additional Comments Provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (July 27, 2022) for the Clean Water Act Section 404 Individual Permit (received August 2022); • Hydrogeomorphic Functional Assessment Summary (received October 2022); • *Streams with Multiple Separate Crossings (received October 2022); • *Bent Mountain Resources Table (received October 2022); • *Table 15. Crossing Method Determination Summary (original February 2021/updated February 2023); • Updated Environmental Justice Screening Tool Results (original November 2021/updated February 2023); and • *Tables A-1 and A-3 West Virginia Stream Impacts and Summary (original February 2021/updated February 2023). [1] Corps staff have reviewed the applicant’s webpage to confirm the above listed documents are accessible. In the event the applicant’s webpage is not accessible, the public may contact Mr. Adam Fannin at (304) 399-5610 to schedule an appointment to view the information. The application, previously provided supplemental information described in our December 12, 2022 Public Notice, and the above described information may be accessed on the applicant’s webpage at: <https://www.mountainvalleypipeline.info/news-info/> Select “IP Applications Supplemental Information February 2023” from the menu on the right-hand side of the page[1]. **PUBLIC INTEREST REVIEW AND COMMENT:** This application will be reviewed in accordance with 33 CFR Parts 320-332, the Regulatory Program of the Corps, and other pertinent laws, regulations, and executive orders. The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable impacts, including cumulative impacts, of the proposed activity on the public interest. That decision will reflect the national concern for both the protection and the utilization of important resources. The benefit that reasonably may be expected to accrue from the proposal must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. All factors that may be relevant to the proposal will be considered, including the cumulative effects thereof; among those factors are conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historic properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, floodplain values, land use, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property ownership and, in general, the needs and welfare of the people. **SOLICITATION OF COMMENTS:** The Corps is soliciting comments from the public, federal, state and local agencies and officials, Indian Tribes and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the supplemental information provided by the applicant. Reference the text of the March 29, 2021 Public Notice and December 12, 2022 Supplemental Public Notice for additional details. The Corps will only consider comments pursuant to the scope of the supplemental information. **CLOSE OF COMMENT PERIOD:** The Huntington District has been designated as the lead Corps district, thus all comments pertaining to this Public Notice must reach their office on or before the close of the comment period listed on page one (1) of this Public Notice. If no further comments are received by that date, it will be considered that there are no additional objections related to the supplemental information. Comments should be submitted electronically to Mr. Adam Fannin by email at CELRP-MVP(a)usace.army.mil. If you do not have internet access, comments may be submitted through the United States Postal Service (USPS) to the following address: United States Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington District ATTN: CELRH-RD-E, Public Notice: LRH-2015-00592-GBR, LRP-2015-798, NAO-2015-0898, 502 Eighth Street, Huntington, West Virginia 25701-2070. Copies should only be provided through the USPS when electronic transmission is not possible. Precautionary internal mail handling procedures may be instituted to protect our workforce, which may result in longer than normal times to process and receive hard copy submissions. To be considered in our evaluation, comments submitted through the USPS should have a postmark dated on, or prior to, the close of the comment period listed on page one (1) of this Public Notice. Please note names and addresses of those who submit comments in response to this Public Notice become part of our administrative record and, as such, may be available to the public under provisions of the Freedom of Information Act. Thank you for your interest in our nation’s water resources. If you have any questions concerning this Public Notice, please contact Adam Fannin of the Energy Resource Branch at (304) 399-5610, by mail at the above address, or by email at: CELRP-MVP(a)usace.army.mil. #######+++++++#######+++++++####### **Please address all comments and inquiries to: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntington District ~ ATTN: CELRH-RD-E Public Notice No. (referenced above) 502 Eighth Street, Huntington, West Virginia 25701-2070 ~ Phone: (304) 399-5610** URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/10/public-notice-u-s-army- corps-15-day-extension-of-mvp-comment-period/>

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Crypo Mining Noise Jars Mountain Community in North Carolina
by Frack Check WV: admin 10 Feb '23

10 Feb '23

# [Crypo Mining Noise Jars Mountain Community in North Carolina](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/10/crypo-mining-noise-jars- mountain-community-in-north-carolina/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/4CA9000D-73E7-43FE-815F-79E4DDFC0AF3-300x168.jpg)](… content/uploads/2023/02/4CA9000D-73E7-43FE-815F-79E4DDFC0AF3.jpeg) Crypto mining computer banks generating high noise level 24/7 **How the blare of a crypto mine woke up this Blue Ridge Mountain town** From [News Report of Bill Weir, Cable News Network (CNN)](https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/19/us/north-carolina-crypto-mine-noise- weir-wxc/index.html), January 19, 2023 **Murphy, North Carolina (CNN) ~** When Judy Stines first heard about cryptocurrency, “I always thought it was smoke and mirrors,” she said. “But if that’s what you want to invest in, you do you.” **But then she heard the sound of crypto, a noise that neighbor Mike Lugiewicz describes as “a small jet that never leaves” and her ambivalence turned into activism.** The racket was coming from stacks and stacks of computer servers and cooling fans, mysteriously set up in a few acres of open farm field down on Harshaw Road. **Once they fired up and the noise started bouncing around their Blue Ridge Mountain homes, sound meters in the Lugiewicz yard showed readings from 55-85 decibels depending on the weather, but more disturbing than the volume is the fact that the noise never stopped.** Mike Lugiewicz describes the noise generated by the nearby crypto mine as "a small jet that never leaves. “There’s a racetrack three miles out right here,” Lugiewicz said, pointing away from the crypto mine next door. “You can hear the cars running. It’s cool!” “But at least they stop,” Stines chimed in, “And you can go to bed!” **The word “mine” evokes pickaxes and coal dust in this region, so at first, the neighbors around Murphy, North Carolina, had no idea that mining a so- called “proof of work” crypto coin is more like playing a computer game with billion-sided dice. Instead of shovels, modern miners need enormous amounts of server power to roll the winning number faster than their competitors around the world.** **This unrelenting demand for electricity was one reason China banned cryptocurrency, touching off a virtual gold rush from Appalachia to New York’s Finger Lakes.** Crypto miners began putting down stakes in places where power is cheap and affordable, and if land use or noise regulations even exist, enforcement is weak. **The mine in Murphy is just one of a dozen in Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina owned by a San Francisco-based company called PrimeBlock, which recently announced $300 million in equity financing and plans to scale up and go public.** But a year and a half after crypto came to this ruby red pocket of Republican retirees and Libertarian life-timers, anger over the mine helped flip the balance of local power and forced the Board of Commissioners to officially ask their state and federal officials to “introduce and champion legislation through the US Congress that would ban and/or regulate crypto mining operations in the United States of America.” “I personally think that if we can get a bill into the system, other (North Carolina) counties will join,” newly elected Chairman Cal Stiles said after the motion was read. When it passed 5-0, the crowd cheered. “Oh boy, they wanted us so bad a year ago,” PrimeBlock co-owner Chandler Song replied via LinkedIn DM when asked about the move to outlaw his crypto mine. “It is unconstitutional, to say the least.” **In 2019, Song and his co-founder Ryan Fang made the Forbes “Big Money” 30 under 30 list which features young entrepreneurs with over $10 million in funding. According to the profile, they founded their first blockchain company, ANKR Network, in 2017 when they were in their early 20s.** ANKR was eventually folded into the umbrella company PrimeBlock and in the final quarter of 2021, they claimed “$24.4 million of revenue, and over 110 megawatts of installed data center capacity.” This came as Song and Fang teamed up with former Goldman Sachs investment banker Gaurav Budhrani to create a company with an “estimated enterprise value of $1.25 billion” with the hopes of selling public stock on the Nasdaq. A few weeks after that announcement, residents packed the Cherokee County Board meeting where representatives from the company were scheduled to appear, but soon learned that management had changed their minds after a power outage at another crypto site nearby. “When (the outage) was investigated, it was found out that the power outage occurred because someone shot, with a gun, one of the (service lines),” County Commission Chair Dan Eichenbaum told the room to groans. “As a result of that, the crypto mining people decided they weren’t going to come.” “They could have joined over video!” one resident said to the board in frustration after the clerk read the company’s statement explaining they canceled “for employee safety.” Months later, Song told The Washington Post that he had received no noise complaints from Cherokee County and said he would build noise insulation walls and install quieter water-based cooling systems. But after erecting walls on only two sides of the mine, construction stopped and the dashed hopes of the community only poured more fuel on local anger as they headed to the polls. **“I’m old. I’m a senior citizen. Social media is not really in my bailiwick,” Stines said as she explained how noise pollution transformed her into an activist. “I like to be behind the scenes and I like to stir the pot. But I knew that we needed to win an election.”** Chandler Song went silent when presented with follow-up questions on LinkedIn, but the mine on Hershaw Road roars on as the Cherokee County attorney searches for ways to put legal teeth into a newly passed law against continuous noise without rankling liberty-loving landowners. **“The Tennessee Valley Authority does not pursue cryptocurrency mines and it is not one of our target markets,” Scott Fiedler, a spokesman for the TVA told CNN. But he acknowledged that the federally owned utility that serves millions in seven states does not keep track of the mines using TVA power, and it’s up to local utilities like the Murphy Electric Power Board to decide who gets service and who gets cut in a blackout.** **That last contingency brought even more bad blood and lost trust during the brutal winter storm that gripped much of the South and forced some of the first rolling blackouts in TVA history. While residents were plunged into cold darkness, they say the power-hungry mine kept humming.** “They shut us down on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day every hour for anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes to an hour,” resident Ron Wright told CNN. “Well, once your power goes down, your heat pumps go off and pipes freeze. But less than one mile away is crypto, allowed to run on the low end. As soon as the power came back, boom! They’re cranking before we are. **Back on Harshaw Road, Mike Lugiewicz pointed to the For Sale sign in front of his house. “September of 2021, I think, is when they turned this on and my wife and I just shook our heads, said, ‘No, we’re out of here.’” He hopes to stay in the area and keep fighting alongside neighbors like Judy Stines until the quiet comes back.** _“I don’t really care what folks invest in,” Stines said with a sigh. “I do care about this noise that affects us every day, all day, all night. It’s never-ending.”_ #######+++++++#######+++++++####### **See Video for Crypto mining noise ~** [This is the sound in front of Mike Lugiewicz’s garage. Source: CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/19/us/north- carolina-crypto-mine-noise-weir-wxc/index.html) URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/10/crypo-mining-noise-jars- mountain-community-in-north-carolina/>

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WVSORO ~ West Virginia Needs Fully Staffed Oil & Gas Inspectors
by Frack Check WV: admin 09 Feb '23

09 Feb '23

# [WVSORO ~ West Virginia Needs Fully Staffed Oil & Gas Inspectors](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/09/wvsoro-west-virginia- needs-fully-staffed-oil-gas-inspectors/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/5330E509-1F2F-4F3C-A588-1BAD7AEEC42E-300x245.png)](… content/uploads/2023/02/5330E509-1F2F-4F3C-A588-1BAD7AEEC42E.png) Regular comprehensive inspections are necessary to protect the public and the workers **WV Surface Owners say DEP needs at least 45, not just 23, oil and gas inspectors** Alert from [WV Surface Owners Rights Organization (WVSORO)](https://wvsoro.org/), February 7, 2023 **WVSORO and our State of WV needs your help.** Senate Bill 448 and House Bill 3110 have passed out of the Energy Committees in their respective houses and are now in their Finance Committees. The WV-DEP and the industry and the Governor and maybe some Legislator agreed to fund a total of (only) 23 inspectors in this bill. No one talked to us surface owners whether we agreed to that number — and we are where the wells are leaking and stinking! And that is only half the inspectors per well that Pennsylvania and Ohio have. **The good news is that those bills will take the DEP from 10 inspectors to 23. The bad news is that the IOGCC research shows we should have 127 inspectors to inspect each of our 75,000 wells (not to mention 20,000 associated tanks) just once a year — and that does not include their other jobs of checking permit applications, visiting well pads during critical drilling stages, overseeing federal orphaned well plugging, responding to complaints etc.** **WVSORO is asking for enough money from the Finance Committees to hire at least 45 inspectors. We do not care if it comes from a share of severance taxes or a fee on industry like a $100 inspection fee on each well.** [Please go to this link that the West Virginia Rivers Coalition is sharing with us and let your legislators know we did not agree to 23 inspectors](https://wvrivers.salsalabs.org/oogfunding/index.html) — that we need at least 45 inspectors — as many per well as other states! [Put that in your message!](https://wvrivers.salsalabs.org/oogfunding/index.html) [For more details see our one-page of bullet points on this subject.](https://wvsoro.org/wvsoro-points-out-that-much-more-funding-is- needed-for-many-more-inspectors/) #######+++++++#######+++++++####### **See Also:**[ GREEN Legislative Update, West Virginia Environmental Council, ASAP](https://wvecouncil.org/) URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/09/wvsoro-west-virginia-needs- fully-staffed-oil-gas-inspectors/>

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It Isn’t Easy Being ‘Green’ ~ Some Will Fake It! … Shame on Ryan & DeWine
by Frack Check WV: admin 08 Feb '23

08 Feb '23

# [It Isn’t Easy Being ‘Green’ ~ Some Will Fake It! … Shame on Ryan & DeWine](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/08/it-isn%e2%80%99t-easy- being-%e2%80%98green%e2%80%99-some-will-fake-it-%e2%80%a6-shame-on-ryan- dewine/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/E8390E86-8380-454D-8C57-B474B8B704E9-300x133.jpg)](… content/uploads/2023/02/E8390E86-8380-454D-8C57-B474B8B704E9.jpeg) Kermit the Frog is correct, you can be green too, if you try! **No, natural gas is not “green energy”** Submitted by [Randi Pokladnik, PhD, Enviro. Scientist](http://main.movclimateaction.org/category/contributors/randi- pokladnik/), Tappan Lake, OH **During the recent “lame duck” session, Ohio’s predominantly Republican legislature and Governor DeWine rushed to pass HB 507.** The amended bill prohibits communities from banning pesticides within city borders and allows state lands and parks to be leased for oil and gas development. The legislation would also “[create a broad new legal definition of ‘green energy’ that would include natural gas](https://www.cleveland.com/open/2022/12/senate- passes-bill-expanding-drilling-on-state-land-dubbing-gas-green-energy.html).” An anonymously funded, pro-natural gas, dark money group, the [Empowerment Alliance](https://www.energyandpolicy.org/the-empowerment-alliance/), helped Ohio lawmakers spin the narrative that natural gas is ‘green.’ Seems like there are also Democrats willing to spin this narrative of methane as being ‘green’ energy. The group, “[Natural Allies for Clean Energy Future](https://naturalalliesforcleanenergy.org/)” has been running TV ads during programing in my area. They claim that gas is “necessary to accelerate our clean energy future.” In January, **they recruited a new Democrat to greenwash the industry: Tim Ryan (D-Ohio)**. This 501c4 organization says it wants to “better inform the public and policy makers about natural gas” but labeling gas as ‘green’ energy does not change the scientific facts: the combustion of methane produces carbon dioxide, and methane itself is a potent greenhouse gas. The bio-geo-chemical processes that created the methane gas and coal deposits in the geographic area of Ohio took place millions of years ago, when carbon sources such as ancient plants and animals decayed in anaerobic conditions. Coal has a higher percentage of carbon than methane; therefore, it produces more carbon dioxide per BTU when burned. However, both substances are fossil fuels that contribute to climate change, and both have limited supplies. Methane produces lower carbon dioxide emissions when burned but that benefit is overshadowed by the fact that extracting methane via high pressure [hydraulic fracking releases enormous amounts of methane gas](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/fracking-boom- tied-to-methane-spike-in-earths-atmosphere) into the atmosphere. These emissions can be from leaks of storage tanks, compressor stations, blowdowns, pipelines, and flaring. A [report published in “Energy Science and Engineering” states“](https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ese3.35) natural gas (both shale gas and conventional gas) is responsible for much of the recent increases in methane emissions, and because of this have a higher greenhouse gas footprint than coal or oil. **Pound for pound, the comparative impact of methane is 25 times greater than carbon dioxide.** Actual ‘green’ energy sources differ dramatically from fracked methane gas when it comes to infrastructure needed, energy costs, and environmental externalities. After initial construction, renewable energy projects such as wind turbines and solar panels require little resource inputs. Their energy sources are limitless and free and the carbon footprint is minimal. “[Utility- scale renewable energy prices are now significantly below those of coal and gas](https://energyinnovation.org/2018/01/22/renewable-energy-levelized-cos… of-energy-already-cheaper-than-fossil-fuels-and-prices-keep-plunging/).” Fracking requires extensive infrastructure and constant inputs of resources such as water, sand and chemicals used to extract the methane. When it comes to the energy costs of fossil fuels, consumers are at the mercy of an industry which consistently makes record profits [while it receives $20 billion a year in subsidies](https://www.brookings.edu/research/reforming-global-fossil-fuel- subsidies-how-the-united-states-can-restart-international-cooperation/). **Ohio’s southeastern counties provide examples of how fracking has turned rural communities into sacrificial industrial sites.** Pipelines mar wooded hillsides, well pads rise over the landscape, thousands of trucks loaded with carcinogenic chemicals, frack sand and toxic produced- water travel our roads every day. Local residents are exposed to air and water emissions from [the process which releases hazardous air pollutants and contaminants water](https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/fracking/). In **February 2018, a gas well in Belmont County experienced a blowout**. The well released methane gas for 20 days before the leak could be contained. The total emissions from the 20-day event were estimated to be equivalent to the total annual emissions of [several countries or 120 metric tons per hour](https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1908712116). **Given the significant contribution of methane gas to climate change and the environmental destruction caused by fracking** , it is hard to understand why any educated person would call this energy source “green”. The only time “green” can legitimately be used to describe methane gas is when pointing out it is a potent greenhouse gas. #######+++++++#######+++++++####### **See Also:** [Ohio Leads On ‘Green’ Energy By Embracing Methane Gas](https://cleantechnica.com/2023/01/24/ohio-leads-on-green-energy-by- embracing-methane-gas/) - Steve Hanley, CleanTechnica, January 24, 2023 URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/08/it-isn%e2%80%99t-easy- being-%e2%80%98green%e2%80%99-some-will-fake-it-%e2%80%a6-shame-on-ryan- dewine/>

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What’s It Like Living Next Door to a Frack Sand Mine (WI, MN, MI, etc.)
by Frack Check WV: Duane Nichols 07 Feb '23

07 Feb '23

# [What’s It Like Living Next Door to a Frack Sand Mine (WI, MN, MI, etc.)](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/07/what%e2%80%99s-it-like-livin… next-door-to-a-frack-sand-mine-wi-mn-mi-etc/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/01/6FF43073-517F-4090-A170-180E465BC2D0-300x200.jpg)](… content/uploads/2023/01/6FF43073-517F-4090-A170-180E465BC2D0.jpeg) “White Lung” like Black Lung is a debilitating (permanent) condition **PHOTO ~ Pure White Silica Sand & Respirable Crystalline Silica Dust** From the Message by [Patricia Popple, Frac Sand Sentinel # 428](https://wisair.wordpress.com/frac-sand-sentinel/), January 30, 2023 **Doug Wood, who lives with his wife, Dawn, in Michigan, just south and west of Detroit, is besiged with a continually developing silica mine right next door to his home. Silica dust is carcinogenic and has known to be so for many years. It settles in the deep lung and in other body parts, unable to be released in anyway due to the small glasslike particulates that are a part of the geological formation.** While Michigan may have a standard set for respirable crystalline silica dust, it seems there is no enforcement by state protection agencies in residential areas. Who is responsible? Doug and his wife have worked endlessly it seems to get someone in the regulatory agencies and mining industry, to install air quality monitoring, and yet nothing has been achieved. Neighbors seem to be unconcerned about the presence of a mining operation that continues to spew dangerous dust into the air without concern for the residential areas that exist around the silica mine. There are other problems also associated with this operation including truck traffic and noise, but the dust produced is horrific and dangerous. **While it could take 20 years for silicosis to develop in the deep lung, it could take less. The glass like particulates don 't seem to be much different than asbestos which is also a known carcinogen.** [Take a look at the video at the site and see for yourself](https://youtu.be/T6PSl9Cdhvw) the problems that the Wood family members are dealing with. They need help and support from the state and neighbors and Michigan's protective agencies and organizations to spread this information and their concerns and more than that, take action. [Fractracker has played a role in the production of this video](https://www.fractracker.org/), and [there are other videos in this series](https://www.fractracker.org/resources/photos/) about the problems faced when regulatory agencies aren't much concerned about the health, safety, and welfare of people and their offspring living near silica or other mines that bring the potential for grave health conditions to a neighborhood. Also, look for them on YouTube. **Please click on the video link here:** <https://youtu.be/T6PSl9Cdhvw> I know that Wisconsinites are aware what the Wood Family is facing, but there are others of you in other locations who may be in similar situations. The industry must tighten its regulations, states and local governmental officials and groups much enforce. Residents and others must get involved by speaking out and by attending meetings of local and state agencies who can make a difference through rules, comprehensive plans, ordinances, zoning, and action. >>> _And by the way, register to VOTE in your communities at upcoming primary and general elections. It is critical that everyone get to the polls or participate in voting via absentee ballot. You can make a difference by researching candidates who are responsive to people facing environmental and health issues in your communties across the nation. Make a difference by exercising your right at your nearest voting location. VOTE!_ >>> [Welcome to the Frac Sand Sentinel,](https://wisair.wordpress.com/frac- sand-sentinel/) a newsletter highlighting resource links, news media accounts, blog posts, correspondence, observations and opinions gathered regarding local actions on, and impacts of, the developing frac sand mining and processing industries. URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/07/what%e2%80%99s-it-like-living- next-door-to-a-frack-sand-mine-wi-mn-mi-etc/>

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Looking Inward AND Looking Outside Ourselves ~ Convocation Set for April 27th
by Frack Check WV: admin 06 Feb '23

06 Feb '23

# [Looking Inward AND Looking Outside Ourselves ~ Convocation Set for April 27th](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/06/looking-inward-and-looking- outside-ourselves-convocation-set-for-april-27th/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/FD1F2BBC-5C39-420E-A9DD- AFD11A2D1F2D.png)](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/FD1F2BBC-5C39-420E-A9DD-AFD11A2D1F2D.png) UU Buddhist Convocations have been ongoing since 2005 **Unitarian Universalist Buddhist Fellowship: Convocation 2023 on April 27th** From the [Announcement of James Ford, UU Buddhist Fellowship](https://www.patheos.com/blogs/monkeymind/2023/01/unitarian- universalist-buddhist-fellowship-convocation-2023.html), January 9, 2023 **Convocation is a biennial opportunity for UU Buddhists** to sit together, compare notes on our sangha experiences, study and play together. We have been holding convocations since 2005. For each convocation we invite a guest teacher to offer dharma talks and teaching. In addition, there will be times of meditation, workshops, and informal meals and breaks where you can get to know other attendees. The 2023 Convocation will begin on Thursday, April 27, with a “grab and go” dinner available at 6 pm, and will end on Sunday, April 30 at 11:30 am. The [DeKoven Center, is lovely retreat center on the shores of Lake Michigan](https://www.dekovencenter.org/). You can register as 1) an online zoom participant, 2) a commuter participant with meals, or 3) an in-person participant, including lodging. There will also be a public talk on Saturday, April 29. **Registration will continue until 4/12/2023.** A limited number of scholarships are available. If you are in need of a scholarship in order to attend, please email _jzimmerman(a)uuma.org_ before registering. There are several major airports nearby (including O’Hare and Milwaukee), and Racine is also served by Amtrak trains. We will be arranging carpooling for the retreat, connecting those who can provide rides with those in need of ground transportation. [CLICK HERE TO REGISTER](https://secure.myvanco.com/L-Z6WK/home) **More on David Loy and the theme of the Convocation ~** Dr. David Robert Loy is a professor of Buddhist and comparative philosophy and Zen teacher in the Sanbo Zen tradition of Japanese Zen Buddhism. Loy is one of the founding members of the new Rocky Mountain Ecodharma Retreat Center, near Boulder, Colorado. He is the author of many books, including Ecodharma: Buddhist Teachings for the Ecological Crisis. **For our weekend together, Loy writes:** _“Traditional Buddhist teachings help us wake up individually and realize our interdependence with others. Today we need to wake up collectively in another way. We need to wake up to what is one of the greatest dangers that humanity has ever encountered. Buddhism can help us understand and respond appropriately to the climate emergency driven ecological crisis. Neither the Buddha nor Asian Buddhist traditions have faced the complex set of challenges of the twenty-first century. Yet Buddhism includes many teachings that are relevant to our situation._ >> _There are profound parallels between our individual human struggles which Buddhism addressed and our ecological predicament today. The parallels suggest that the eco-crisis is as much a spiritual challenge as a technological and economic one. In both cases, at the root of the problem is our illusion of separation: that “I” am separate from others, and that we are separate from the natural world._ >> _Perhaps the most important thing that Buddhism has to offer today is a new version of the bodhisattva — or ecosattva — path, which can respond to collective and institutionalized versions of greed, ill will and delusion (the three poisons). All this suggests, the ecological challenge is also a challenge to the ways we understand and practice Buddhism.”_ #######+++++++#######+++++++####### **See Also :** [Morgantown Buddhist Meditation](https://morgantownbuddhism.wixsite.com/morgantownmeditation) <https://morgantownbuddhism.wixsite.com/morgantownmeditation> URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/06/looking-inward-and-looking- outside-ourselves-convocation-set-for-april-27th/>

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Religion Involves Looking Inward at Ourselves AND Outward at Our Earth
by Frack Check WV: admin 05 Feb '23

05 Feb '23

# [Religion Involves Looking Inward at Ourselves AND Outward at Our Earth](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/05/religion-involves-looking- inward-at-ourselves-and-outward-at-our-earth/) [![](https://www.frackcheckwv.net/wp- content/uploads/2023/02/9B186F79-5C17-4575-B3E7-913FB621D441-300x147.jpg)](… content/uploads/2023/02/9B186F79-5C17-4575-B3E7-913FB621D441.jpeg) Religion is more than a narrow self-centered viewpoint; a comprehensive worldview involves concern for the Earth **How religious faith can and should inspire environmental action** From an [Article by Christopher Ives, The Conversation](https://phys.org/news/2023-01-faith-environmental-action.html), January 9, 2023 It has become clear that meaningful progress on climate change is not going to be achieved by one person or indeed, one government. Coordinated action between governments, industry, local leaders and society is needed urgently. The recent COP27 decision itself mentions the importance of local communities, cities, indigenous peoples and children. But strikingly absent is the role of faith or religion. Roughly 84% of the global population identifies with some sort of religion, a figure expected to rise to 87% by 2050. Our research shows there is potential for faith to mobilize social environmental change, yet it is usually left out of conversations about sustainability. Religion can have a significant and positive influence on people's behavior when it comes to the environment. Spiritual practices and liturgies are being developed to help believers integrate environmental concerns with their spirituality. **Two key publications are Pope Francis 's encylical Care for our Common Home and Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh's Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet. Both highlight the relevance of religious ideas to environmental crises and guide people to live sustainably.** **Faith can be a driving force behind environmentally responsible investment. The organization FaithInvest helps religious institutions use their financial resources ethically and sustainably.** Religious groups can also coordinate collective action on the climate. **Ahead of COP27, faith leaders from around the world published a letter calling for an end to new fossil fuel projects.** Of course, the same influences can and have been used to obstruct action on climate change, and formal institutional commitment does not necessarily translate to personal action. Our research helps explain how mechanisms of religious belief can be used to inspire environmental action. **Faith and the planet Earth** ~ We were interested in understanding processes of personal and practical change towards sustainability among Christians in the UK. We studied responses to the Archbishop of Canterbury's 2020 Lent book, **Saying Yes to Life** , authored by Ruth Valerio. The book presented theological perspectives on the importance of taking care of the natural world, focusing on environmental challenges such as water scarcity, air pollution, land degradation, biodiversity loss and energy use. **We surveyed 133 people from a range of age groups and church backgrounds before and after engaging with the text, and conducted focus groups. We found that this intervention significantly influenced participants ' beliefs and behavior related to the environment.** After engaging with the text, people had more positive attitudes towards the environment. Most reported at least a short-term increase in pro-environmental behaviors, particularly around energy use, food choices and recycling. Framing environmental issues in theological terms also influenced participants' environmental attitudes. They reported perceiving nature as sacred, feeling more connected to the natural world, and adopting a belief that humans should care for creation. **We identified three steps that people go through when their faith is mobilized into action:** 1\. The first step is revealing, where the nature of environmental problems and pre-existing theological beliefs (such as humans having a divine right to dominate the environment) are illuminated to the individual. For our participants, this came through thoughtful reading of the text and discussion with other believers. 2\. The second step is reflecting. People then consider how their own beliefs and lifestyles might need to be reconsidered according to new theological ideas or scientific information. 3\. The final step depends on the degree of environmental commitment already held. For those whose lifestyles are incompatible with the new information, the step of redirecting describes a process of internal (cognitive or spiritual) and external (behavioral) change. For those already pursuing pro- environmental lifestyles, the step of reinforcing involves further strengthening these commitments. **Tackling the environmental crisis** ~ Currently, many conversations about the environment are framed by economics—the triple bottom line (a concept urging businesses to think about profit, people and the planet), natural capital and green investment. Appealing to moral and spiritual worldviews could inspire people to think about environmentalism in terms of justice, sacred duty, compassion, empathy and kindness. **Having a community of faith that can support, reinforce and sustain environmental action is another critical function of religion. Many participants mentioned the hope and resolve that came from knowing they were part of a larger body of Christian believers working for change.** Appealing to faith-based worldviews has potential to bypass political divides and cultural affiliations that have stifled action. Indeed, in this research, the greatest shifts towards environmental concern were among participants who self-identified as politically conservative. **Faith is fundamental to many people 's outlook on the world.** Our research shows that religion offers a powerful opportunity to inspire environmental action. But there is work to be done on both sides. Religious leaders could further incorporate environmental matters into their spiritual teaching and practice, and scientists and policymakers could engage more with people of faith. **Humanity 's ability to avert environmental catastrophe will depend on sustainability becoming embedded into every institution and cultural setting. Religion is no exception.** >>> **Christopher Ives is a professor of religious studies at Stonehill College**. In his teaching and writing he focuses on ethics in Zen Buddhism and Buddhist approaches to nature and environmental issues. His publications include _Zen on the Trail: Hiking as Pilgrimage; Imperial-Way Zen: Ichikawa Hakugen’s Critique and Lingering Questions for Buddhist Ethics_. He is on the editorial board of the Journal of Buddhist Ethics. URL: <https://www.frackcheckwv.net/2023/02/05/religion-involves-looking- inward-at-ourselves-and-outward-at-our-earth/>

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