Over 100 students and community members across Chicagoland gathered Friday to pressure the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) to hold three public hearings on hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”). Protesters demanded that the IDNR deny applications for permits that they believe will compromise the health and safety of residents throughout Illinois.

The rally was just one of more than 200 actions coordinated as part of the Global Frackdown, an annual international day of action to promote clean, renewable energy over the dirty fossil fuels extracted by fracking.  The Chicago action, organized by Chicagoland Against Fracking and Food and Water Watch, targeted the IDNR, which is currently in the process of drafting rules under the framework of the IL fracking regulatory bill signed by Governor Quinn in June.  The local effort joined over 300 advocacy groups and citizens across six continents in publicly declaring the dangers of fracking.

Much controversy surrounds the fracking process, in which a toxic cocktail of water, sand and chemicals is injected at high pressures about a mile underground to create fissures that release oil and natural gas. Fracking generates enormous quantities of dangerous and potentially radioactive wastewater, and has been linked extensively to groundwater contamination, air pollution, and increased seismic activity.

The regulatory bill met opposition from a multitude of groups across Illinois.  Despite attempts to garner inclusion in IDNR’s regulatory process, citizens have repeatedly been ignored.  Chicagoland Against Fracking Facebook Page: facebook.com/ChicagolandAgainstFracking