Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon will headline a press conference tomorrow protesting the decision of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to allow fracking in New York State. The pair, respectively the wife and son of Beatle John Lennon, have pulled together a slate of artists opposed to fracking — more formally known as hydraulic fracturing — a dangerous practice used by the oil industry to extract natural gas from bedrock. Unwanted side effects of the process include the contamination of the water supply and the release of toxic methane gas into the atmosphere.
In an op-ed piece in today’s New York Times, Sean writes, “The mayor’s plan to ‘make sure that the gas is extracted carefully and in the right places’ is akin to a smoker telling you, ‘Smoking lighter cigarettes in the right place at the right time makes it safe to smoke.’”
Fracking has already so contaminated some water supplies that it’s possible to set the water coming from your faucet on fire.
For more on Artists Against Fracking, visit their site by clicking HERE
–Bill Adler
