1,000 times more important than you think.

An independent study in Pennsylvania found methane levels up to 1,000 times higher than the EPA estimated recently.  The measurements were taken at about 3,400 ft. above ground level over a broad area of gas production.  Where levels were highest crews on the ground found pipelines and wells responsible. 

Methane is up to 20 times more destructive than CO2 in accelerating global warming.  Methane lasts about a century in the atmosphere, trapping much higher rates of reflected heat than CO2.  

Fracking companies, drilling rig & pipeline operators, local utilities, none do much to halt leaks.  In the field it is often vented or flared off rather than put into the system.  Driven by greed, but unable to see or care about the monumental volume of waste.  Some claim if they stopped all but 1% of the leaks and vents they would gain hundreds of millions in product volume.

Those who would promote natural gas as a cleaner fuel, 1/2 the carbon of coal, are mistaken, with the 1/2 of carbon you get fewer calories of energy, and every day another century of assured destruction of the climate.  

Today in Kansas a gas company is going to court asking for imminent domain over thousands of acres in 3 counties.  They want to force landowners into signing away their rights to gas for those resisting, and force a price on those willing who want "to much".  What other industry can do this?  Can WallMart go to court and force you to do business with them at their price?  

These are reasons we must exit the fossil fuel economy.  "Operation Free" (click that little shield on the left) are military vets, many of whom know first hand they fought a war in Iraq for oil, who believe national security will be enhanced if we have our own renewable energy sources, stop being the protectors of fuel lines in the middle east, stop global warming which will create more failed states.  If the US, the largest economy, switches to renewables and energy stingy factories, homes, appliances & cars, the whole world will switch, and we starve Russia from 100 million a day in natural gas, about that much in oil too, Iran too, and so on.