Courtesy of Danielle Francis
Dozens of activists stood outside the Capitol to voice their concern of fracking in Florida Friday afternoon.
Protesters and activists waved flags, and carried posters to make an effort to let their voice be heard in the community. Members demanded Florida senators to vote against House Bill 191 and Senate Bill 318 in order to put a stop to fracking.
Protesters and activists are unshakable for this was one of the many protest that have been held at the Capitol to inform community members and Senators about their strong beliefs. President of od Rethink Energy Florida explained what the meaning of the protest was.
“These protests are showing our Legislatures that this actually is an issue that we’re paying attention to and that we have a lot of numbers on our side,” she said. “What we’re seeing is that this is a very different issue than conventional drilling. This is a very different process, it’s a much more risky process.”
Unlike conventional drilling, hydraulic fracking releases a water mixture that is harmful to the environment. This is a process used to tap into fossil fuel deposits to pressure pump water chemicals into the ground. One of the biggest concerns that environmentalists have is that well waters can become contaminated.
“The people are with us. The legislatures who are getting oil and gas money are not,” said Amy Datz, a member and activist in the community.
Protestors continued to voice their opinion by waving flags and chanting “ban fracking now”. Some community members showed their support by honking their car horns as they drove by.
Chad Desmarteau, an educator from Blountstown, Fla., said he does not feel that people are properly being informed about the issue.
“Most people don’t really have a good channel or a good network to find out about what’s going on,” Desmarteau said. “I would say that most of my friends don’t even know about it.”
Similar protest have taken place across the country and continue to grow in numbers as the legislation continues to prohibit local governments from banning the practice.
“It matters to everybody. It’s going to affect all of us and all of our waters so it is important,” Desmarteau said.