SCI 1101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Safe Drinking Water Act, Cuyahoga River, Environmental Policy
Document Summary
The marcellus shale is a vast rock formation that underlies portions of pennsylvania, New york, west virginia, and ohio and contains shale gas. Companies use the process of hydraulic fracturing or hydrofracking = injecting liquid into the shale after it has been broken up to release the gas. Hydrofracking gets the gas more efficiently, keeping prices low. More natural gas use means less coal and less greenhouse gasses. Some claim that hydrofracking is polluting drinking water. Policy = a formal set of general plans and principles to address problems and guide decision making. Public policy = policy made by governments. Environmental policy = policy that pertains to human interactions with the environment. Regulates resource use or reduces pollution to promote human welfare and/or protect resources. Environmental policy addresses issues of fairness and resource use. Science, ethics, and economics help formulate policy: science provides information and analysis, and ethics and economics clarify how society can address problems.
