Fracking or No Fracking? The issue of switching from coal to nataral gas.

     I would like to think of myself as environmentally conscious. That means I recycle, I don't litter and I'm not very supportive of the idea switching from coal to natural gas for energy usage. I am definitely NOT okay with the recent facts being suggested that natural gas will not be able to halt the climate change. There is research that can confirm that replacing coal with natural gas may add more harmful heat to our blue planet.
     Ever since I watched Al Gore's environmental documentary entitled, "An Inconvenient Truth", I have become more worried about over the safety and health of planet Earth. I was somehow convinced that carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles contributed to most of the toxicity in the atmosphere. The same kind of toxicity that's affecting global warming. Further research and school lectures in the classroom have informed me that methane gas from cattle and cattle farming contributes more CO2 emissions than automobiles. Carbon Dioxide can cause acceleration to global warming, but I also discovered that the methane gas being released from the drilling of natural gas may be more destructive to the planet.
     The term for drilling natural gas from the earth is known as ''fracking."  I learned about the term from my Rhetoric Literature professor Dr. Morris. I even learned some interesting facts about natural gas. I learned that natural gas was made of methane. The gas is located in natural gas fields, oil fields and coal beds. The uses for natural gas range from generating heat inside homes, electricity, ammonia production, hydrogen production and is even considered a cleaner substitute for petroleum fuel.
     I recently read in the Science Daily website an article titled " Switching from Coal to Natural Gas Would Do Little for Global Climate, Study Indicates", which explains that the further drilling of natural gas instead of coal will not affect the climate in a positive way. Tom Wigley, a senior research associate at the National Center for Atmospheric Research says, " Relying more on natural gas would reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, but it would do little to help solve the climate problem" ( Science Daily, 1). I was skeptical about natural gas drilling before and now I'm convinced that this will be a losing game for saving our planet. The article also states, " By running a series of computer simulations, Wigley found that a 50 percent reduction in coal and a corresponding increase in natural gas use would lead to a slight increase in world wide warming for the next 40 years" ( Science Daily, 2). Both energy sources seem to come with consequences.
     I also must comment that I'm from the great state of Pennsylvania. I 'm also shocked to learn that natural gas drilling was occurring more in Pennsylvania. In the article " Playing Pennsylvania's Natural Gas Room", Aaron Levitt writes about the future of gas drilling in PA. Levitt states, " Pennsylvania, with a small contribution from West Virginia, now accounts for more than 85 % of all the natural gas produced in the Northeast"(1). I am upset to learn that my home state of PA may contribute to global warming. I believe the state of Pennsylvania has the intelligence and capability to find cleaner sources of energy without depending on gas or coal. I would like to dedicate some of my future time into helping my state into a cleaner world. How about you?