In his recent mini-documentary "Is the Sky Pink?,"
filmmaker Josh Fox touches on one of the key reasons why government is so often
stymied in its efforts to protect public health. So long as there is a "debate" over something,
regulation and legislation can be postponed until the science becomes
"clear."
And so long as
there are scientists and academic institutions ready to abandon ethics when
money comes along, "debates" can be manufactured to suit the
circumstances, and efforts to protect public health can be delayed indefinitely.
A recent article in Bloomberg News illustrates how oil and
gas companies engaged in fracking have paid research scientists and even state
universities to literally create science that supports fracking. The practice gives new meaning to the
term "creationism."
Last week, Grassroots compiled and delivered to NY Governor
Cuomo a Digest of Independent Science on Fracking. By "independent,"
we mean just that - studies and reports that were conducted by scientists for
whom the word integrity still has meaning, and who respect the role of honest science in helping to inform - rather than obfuscate - the public discourse.
We salute their work, and sincerely hope
that the Governor will take the time to read through the Digest we delivered to
him. If he does, he'll know exactly what to do about fracking in New York.
