frac sand

Midwest Environmental Advocates continued its science-free assault on industrial sand mining, also referred to as frac sand mining, by filing a petition with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency asking the federal agency to revoke an air quality permit granted to Superior Silica Sands.

The mining of sand used for hydraulic fracking has become a controversial issue in communities throughout Western Wisconsin. While many discussions examine the environmental and economic impacts of industrial sand mining, a new paper by an anthropology professor from the University of Wisconsin-Stout attempts to take stock of the social impacts of mining. This paper investigates a phenomenon called “loss of place,” which refers to an emotion people have when they lose a sense of their own identity due to changing physical or societal landscapes.

In today’s episode of The Heartland Daily Podcast, Audrey Boerner from the Institute for Wisconsin’s Health Inc. joins research fellow Isaac Orr to talk about the safety of frac sand mining.