COLUMBUS, Ohio — Troubling information has been uncovered about the use of so-called classified chemicals in fracking operations in Ohio. Using mapping and data analysis by FracTracker Alliance, new research from the Partnership for Policy Integrity shows the oil and gas industry injected potentially toxic chemicals more than 11,000 times into roughly 1,400 fracking wells between 2013 and 2018.

Report author Dusty Horwitt, senior council at the Partnership, said there’s cause for concern.

"EPA regulators have found that many secret chemicals have health risks,” Horwitt said. “And there are multiple potential pathways of exposure, including leaks and spills, underground migration, also road-spreading of these chemicals. "

Ohio law allows well owners to conceal chemical formulas as trade secrets, which Silverio Caggiano, battalion chief at the Youngstown Fire Department, said ties the hands of first responders who need to act fast in a spill or explosion.

"We depend upon being able to quantify and qualify the product that we're dealing with so we know how to mitigate it,” Caggiano said. “If I don't know what it is, I can't identify its physical properties and how I'm going to take care of it, or how to protect people."

Under the federal Toxic Substances Control Act, first responders can request trade secret chemical identities in emergencies in a written statement. But Caggiano argued by the time such a request is answered and approved, it's typically too late.

The industry has claimed trade-secret provisions prevent competitors from stealing their formulas. Horwitt countered there is a way for companies to protect their chemical information without keeping the public in the dark.

"Drilling companies can make their chemical identities available to the public in a random list, so that their competitors would not be able to reverse-engineer that list of chemicals into the products that they're putting into their wells,” Horwitt said.

Caggiano said he isn't opposed to fracking, but feels the industry is being given a free pass.

"Long after these companies have grabbed their money and went back to wherever they came from, the body count is going to start. Farmer Jim is going to have problems; he's going to have leukemia, his wife's going to have breast cancer, their daughter is going to give birth to a kid that may have birth defects,” Caggiano said. “And these companies are going to be long gone, and we're going to be stuck with the problems."

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, chemicals used in fracking can cause irritation to skin and lungs, and can be toxic to nerves, organs and human development.

This story was produced in association with Media in the Public Interest and funded in part by the George Gund Foundation.


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A survey of 760 registered Latino voters found 87% of Latinos support projects to produce a cleaner, natural world.

The poll, conducted in 10 states, including Illinois, was commissioned by the Hispanic Access Foundation. The organization creates outreach efforts to inspire individuals to improve themselves, their families and their communities.

Vanessa Muñoz, waterways program manager for the Hispanic Access Foundation, said the survey showed disparities and injustices in the Latino community and is designed to empower community leaders' push for change and boost issue awareness. She noted the survey's timing is crucial.

"We are in an election year," Muñoz emphasized. "The survey results can play a critical role in shaping and informing policy discussions and ensuring that the needs and perspective of Latino voters are considered in the electoral process."

Among those surveyed, 91% of Latinos support policies for future Congressional sessions such as new national monuments, national parks or wildlife refuges to protect areas for outdoor recreation.

Environmentalists are seeing an increase in Latino advocacy in the challenge to clean up U.S. land and waters, especially in the Mississippi River area.

Muñoz explained one goal is the Biden Administration's 30 by 30 plan, which calls for conserving 30% of America's lands, fresh water and oceans by the year 2030.

"We found that 86% of Latinos think that PFAS or forever chemicals are a major threat to the Mississippi River," Muñoz outlined. "Another one was that 93% of Latinos believe that trash dumped in rivers and streams is a major threat to the Mississippi River."

Other survey respondents were based in Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.

Public comment ends this week for a permit needed for a high-profile oil pipeline project in northern Wisconsin. Opponents, including tribal voices, as well as supporters, have laid out recent organizing efforts ahead of an application decision. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will eventually decide on an environmental permit sought by Canadian firm Enbridge to re-route a section of its Line 5 pipeline around the Bad River Reservation. Tribal leaders have been engaged in a legal fight with the company over its existing line, which currently covers 12 miles of reservation land.

Gussie Lord, Earthjustice managing attorney of the Tribal Partnerships Program, represents the tribe and says the new plan fails to ease concerns.

"We know that this reroute is not a solution. It's a false solution to the dangers of the current pipeline. In fact, it really extends the dangers of the pipeline and increases the threat of a devastating oil spill, both to the Bad River Reservation's watershed and Lake Superior watershed," Lord explained.

Her group and other environmental organizations say more than 150,000 comments are being submitted that reflect these concerns. A separate coalition of labor, business and agricultural groups says it gathered roughly 14,000 signatures in support of the re-route. Ahead of public comment closing tomorrow, the coalition sent a letter arguing the construction would be a big economic win, with the new line aiding regional propane supplies.

Some supporters tout the potential jobs and related benefits.

Jason Wilhite, activism team lead with the outdoor apparel company Patagonia, contends any major spill could harm water recreation and all the business activity it creates.

"Put simply, a rupture of the Line 5 pipeline would have a devastating impact on our regional economy," he explained.

In an emailed statement, Enbridge said it's committed to extensive protective measures to minimize and mitigate project impacts. Tribal advocates say they are especially worried about the potential effect on wild rice beds. It's not clear when the Army Corps of Engineers will decide on the application. Other permits are needed for the proposed re-route.


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A new project is set to help North Carolina communities address environmental justice and climate equity.

The city of Charlotte, in collaboration with environmental groups, is launching the GreenPrints Initiative - to promote sustainable housing, improve air quality and develop green infrastructure in under-resourced neighborhoods.

CleanAIRE NC is among the key organizations involved.

According to the group's community engagement coordinator Kennedy Williams, the initiative's goal is to address the lack of sustainability and educate communities that need it the most - and are often overlooked.

"A lot of people are experiencing issues related to climate change that they don't know what climate change is or necessarily what sustainability looks like," said Williams. "So making sure that we're introducing sustainability and then also making sure that every aspect of every resident's lifestyle has sustainability at its core."

Williams explained that much of the initiative's efforts will be concentrated in what are known as the Opportunity Corridors of Beatties Ford Road and Freedom Drive, as well as Wilkinson Boulevard.

These areas have been identified as priorities for the deployment of sustainable solutions and community engagement.

A key component of the GreenPrints Initiative is air-quality monitoring, a project spearheaded by CleanAIRE NC.

Williams said sensors will be placed throughout the target neighborhoods to provide valuable data to community members, nonprofits and regulatory agencies.

"Low-cost air pollution sensors will be distributed to air keepers, who are basically like volunteer community members who are interested in maintaining air monitoring," said Williams. "The data from these sensors will be available through CleanAIRE's air-keeper dashboard, and this will really help better understand their geographic data and also their environmental data."

Williams noted that the GreenPrints Initiative is not just about implementing changes but also about listening to the community.

CleanAIRE NC plans to hold a forum on October 19 to gather input from residents about their sustainability concerns and priorities, ensuring that the initiative meets the needs of those most affected.




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