This semester I chose to work with Environment Montana, an organization focused on protecting clean air, water, and open space for the environment that we all share. They have several different projects that they’re currently working on, but I decided to put my efforts into their Holding Our Ground campaign that is working to protect public lands from the Trump Administration’s “energy dominance” agenda. Oil and gas drilling threatens not only the beautiful, wild places across our glorious state, but also the wildlife and people who live in or around those areas. Environment Montana monitors and challenges oil and gas leases across the state by educating locals and mobilizing coalition partners, guides, outfitters, ranchers, and anyone who cares about the health of Montana’s environment.
The big project I’ve been working on throughout this semester is a publicly accessible map to educate people on all of the reported oil and wastewater spills that occurred in Montana during 2018, because it is barely reported on. To make this map I had to use strategic thinking, problem solving skills, and a little bit of math to figure out the best way to organize the data, as well as refine my time management skills to get everything done on time.
I was astonished to find out that there were seventy-eight spills just within the last year, and everyone who I have shown the map to thus far was just as shocked. That number doesn’t even include the twenty-five fires that also happened. Some of which released even more barrels of oil. What’s more shocking is that I could find only one of those spills reported in a news article.
I’ve also learned a lot more about fracking than I previously knew. If you don’t already know, hydraulic fracturing (fracking) wells use toxic chemicals that are injected into the ground to break up rocks to access the oil and gas underneath those rocks. At least 157 different chemicals used in fracking have been identified as toxic, with the toxicity of many more left unknown. An average of 3 million gallons of water per well is required to pump those chemicals into the ground, and all of those chemicals are then present in the wastewater that frequently has leaks or spills that contaminate the land and water sources.
The effects of fracking on the environment are both immediate and delayed, in any extraction of fossil fuels there is a contribution to greenhouse emissions which furthers the effects of climate change. The spills also cause visible and measurable environmental pollution which is a danger to any ecosystem, and harmful to human health in affected communities. I challenge you to click around the map to see if you can find any spills that are near waterways, on public lands, or close to communities. I think you’ll be surprised at the places that the government has allowed companies to put corporate greed over the health of its constituents.
I’m very grateful for this internship opportunity because I’ve been able to research a topic that interests me and create something tangible to educate the public about what’s going on in our state. It reminds me why I study environmental studies and why I joined the Wilderness and Civilization program: to cultivate a good steward in myself and others by being aware of our values and relationships with the natural world. We have a long way to go to fully change the current systems of living to be sustainable for the future, but if there’s anything I’ve learned from W&C, it’s that there’s always hope for change if you are passionate about something.
~ Ella Dohrmann
Wilderness & Civ 