Majority of Americans Uninformed About Fracking, Survey Finds

Most Americans are uninformed and lack opinions on hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a process used to extract oil and gas from rock formations, a new survey says. Fifty-eight percent of people surveyed specifically reported that they knew nothing at all about fracking, and the same percentage said they didn’t know whether they supported fracking or opposed it. Seven percent said they were aware of some of the process’s environmental impacts, and 3 percent said they knew of positive economic and energy supply impacts of fracking. Of those who held an opinion on it, 20 percent were opposed to fracking and 22 percent supported it. “Broadly speaking, our results paint a picture of an American populace that is largely unaware and undecided about this issue,” the study says. The study — conducted by researchers at Oregon State, George Mason, and Yale universities — was recently published in the journal Energy Policy.