As the New Mexico Legislature weighs a bill that to impose a four-year moratorium on fracking in the state, we thought it would be useful to take a look at just how dangerous and destructive fracking is in the Land of Enchantment.
To this end, we mapped out spills, gas releases, fires, blowouts, and other incidents reported by the oil and gas industry in 2018 to state regulators. As you might imagine, the data is horrendous.
It shows that in 2018, 1,514 incidents were reported by the oil and gas industry. Check out the map below or click here to view the full version.
That amounts to over four spills, fires, blowouts and per day in 2018.
It’s an astonishing amount of disaster unfolding in New Mexico’s oil and gas producing regions, which include the Greater Chaco region in the northwest and the Greater Carlsbad Caverns region in the southeast.
And it solidly underscores the need for a moratorium on fracking in New Mexico. With the oil and gas industry seemingly incapable of preventing spills and other incidents, it’s high time to put the brakes on this ongoing catastrophe.
Hopefully the New Mexico Legislature will follow through with a fracking moratorium this year.
If you haven’t yet, lend your support for the bill and help convince legislators to protect New Mexico from fracking. Tell them we need a pause on fracking!
The air, water, land, and communities of New Mexico can’t afford to be constantly suffering at the hands of the oil and gas industry. It’s time for a #PauseonFracking.
