{"id":18380,"date":"2012-09-20T15:15:18","date_gmt":"2012-09-20T20:15:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/texas\/?p=18380"},"modified":"2013-11-15T15:03:57","modified_gmt":"2013-11-15T21:03:57","slug":"new-report-aims-to-hit-fracking-right-in-the-pocket-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/texas\/2012\/09\/20\/new-report-aims-to-hit-fracking-right-in-the-pocket-book\/","title":{"rendered":"New Report Aims to Hit Fracking Right in the Pocketbook"},"content":{"rendered":"
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StateImpact Texas<\/p>

A hydraulic fracking operation in the Barnett Shale.<\/p><\/div>\n

It’s nothing new to hear environmental groups raise concerns over the health dangers of hydraulic fracturing\u00a0\u2013\u00a0that’s all in a days work. But a new report from Environment Texas<\/a> questions one aspect of fracking that rarely comes under scrutiny: its supposed economic benefit.<\/p>\n

“The Costs of Fracking<\/a>” collects data from academic and government studies to paint a picture of an industry that may be a bigger drain on state tax money than previously thought. The report looks at things like damage to roads<\/a>, increased cost for water infrastructure projects, and drilling’s impact on property values in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.<\/p>\n

“Truck traffic to bring water to a single fracking site does as much damage to roads as 3.5 million cars,” Environment Texas director Luke Metzger\u00a0tells StateImpact Texas. “So as a result the state of Texas has been forced to approve $40 million to repair roads here in the Dallas-Fort Worth and Barnett Shale region.”<\/p>\n

Other costs enumerated in the report includes:<\/p>\n