On today's globalized World, news from places thousands of kilometres
from us come in front of our eyes instantly, and on great part of them we can see that the humankind is confronted to multiple environmental challenges. We suffer undeniable climate changes which are causing extreme meteorological phenomena such as draughts and floods, scorching heat waves and freezing afterwards, and hurricanes and tornados of an unbelievable magnitude. Out of control consumption of land and energy resources has made our society a huge producer of wastes and pollution, and, as a result, we are putting in severe risk many ecosystems, populated by many nowadays endangered species. Didn't you hear of yet another ecological disaster in yesterday's late newscast? In this article, part of a series dedicated to environmental issues, I would like to focus on Energy, since announcements from the OPEC related to petroleum production has brought this matter in the limelight. However, owing to the enormous extent of this topic, and so as not to examine it lightly, I am just going to discuss fracking and the controversy its use has created. Fracking is a gas extraction technique based in high-pressure injection of water containing special agents into deep parts of the ground in order to let natural gas or oil flow more freely and make them more easily captured on the terrain surface. Although this extraction method has certain advantages, especially from an economic point of view, some evidence exists that it can have environmental impact in the region where it is carried out, in the form of ground and water contamination, air and noise pollution, and, apparently, even the triggering of earthquakes. According to experts in this matter, to balance the pros and cons of this method, several measures can be taken that will probably minimize its negative effects: exhaustive studies of the geological conditions of the area before approving its use, obligatory nature of continuous seismic and pollution monitoring during the process and improvements of geological and chemical instrumentation devices. All these criterion and rules should be regulated by law and made to be obeyed by police and justice. Would you like this kind of industry near you without prior analysis and permanent monitoring? All those arguments have made me create a brand new campaign in Change.org, "Let's take Fracking to the Congress" and, as it is unlikely that our politicians do anything without public action, I encourage you to participate in it with your vote and your experiences. Do not fail me!