| Dear UCS supporter, With just one more day for tax-deductible giving in 2014, I wanted to share two quick, independent studies that show why our work this year is so important. First: in a survey, people living within half a mile of hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") sites reported twice as many illnesses—nose bleeds, rashes, respiratory conditions—as their neighbors just another half mile away.1 Second: scientists have documented shocking levels of cancer-causing chemicals in the air near fracking wells.2 And that's just the fracking chemicals we know about. With more than 82,000 wells that use fracking techniques across the United States, why are we just beginning to learn about their health hazards? Because the oil and gas industry is calling the chemicals used in fracking "trade secrets" to hide them from independent research. It's wrong to keep people in the dark on such important information, and we won't let it stand. Make a tax-deductible gift before tomorrow to end the secrecy, defend science, and clean up our air and water. The deadline for tax-deductible 2014 gifts is midnight tomorrow. Please, give now. Right now, UCS supporters are pushing the Environmental Protection Agency to stand up to oil and gas companies by requiring full disclosure of the chemicals used in fracking. We've already delivered 30,000 letters to the EPA demanding that they release a strong policy. But we're up against some tough opposition. Chemical industry trade groups are pressuring the EPA to abandon mandatory disclosure in favor of "voluntary reporting" by fracking companies.3 Meanwhile, ExxonMobil is sponsoring a nationwide push for legislation (already passed in Texas) that would let companies withhold information about fracking chemicals even from public health officials. Lawmakers in at least five states are considering versions of the bill.4 Someone must defend against these actions. Someone needs to bring science to bear as legislators are making these decisions. If not us, who's that going to be? Donate to the Union of Concerned Scientists to power our work in 2015. I know what you're thinking. If the oil and gas industry wants something bad enough, they get it, right? Wrong. As someone who's been a government official, I can tell you that the side with the most vocal supporters, the smartest strategy, and the most compelling, irrefutable facts wins in the end. Which is why I'm optimistic. After years of public service, I joined UCS because time and again I've seen science-based campaigns win. Here are a few of the victories UCS members helped make happen in just the last year: Fuel economny standards that will cut U.S. oil use by more than 3.5 million barrels per day Limits on asthma-causing chemicals in gasoline that will save thousands of lives Renewable energy standards that promote clean power, successfully defended in state after state We've done all of this together, and so much more. That's why I know we can beat the industry on fracking. The question is, will we win quickly, in the months ahead? Or will it take more and more reports of unexplained illness? More reports of hidden contamination, like the three billion gallons of fracking waste water pumped into California aquifers just last month?5 I don't know about you, but if my family was at risk, I wouldn't want to rely on the oil and gas industry's voluntary regulation. Please, make a tax-deductible gift now to expose the chemicals fracking companies are pumping into our ground and releasing into the air we breathe. Our work together—calling out misinformation in the media and on Capitol Hill, organizing experts and activists, collaborating with local officials and corporate CEOs—it all boils down to the things we care about most: our families' health and our quality of life here on earth. As 2014 comes to a close, I hope you'll make a gift to fuel our work uncovering the chemicals used in fracking, and all of the other important campaigns we run together as scientists and activists fighting for change. Thanks for your support throughout the year, and for your generous contribution today.  | Best wishes,
Ken Kimmell
President
Union of Concerned Scientists |
1. http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/09/10/respiratory-skin-problems-soar-near-gas-wells-study-says (Note: This was a blind study—survey respondents had no idea that researchers were investigating fracking.)
2. http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/10/30/toxic-chemicals-and-carcinogens-skyrocket-near-fracking-sites-study-says
3. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/11/fracking-by-the-numbers-report_n_4037295.html
4. http://www.propublica.org/article/alec-and-exxonmobil-push-loopholes-in-fracking-chemical-disclosure-rules
5. http://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/Waste-Water-from-Oil-Fracking-Injected-into-Clean-Aquifers-282733051.html | 
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