Recent opinion pieces and public comments by Senator McCormick and other members of Congress pushing for expanded fossil fuel extraction in Pennsylvania represent a reckless ode to corporate greed, masquerading as energy policy.
Their central premise—that doubling down on Pennsylvania's fossil fuel extraction will secure "energy dominance"—is not just myopic; it is a direct threat to public health, ecological stability, and global climate progress.
This rhetoric, peddled by fossil fuel apologists, epitomizes the kind of short-sighted thinking that prioritizes quarterly profits over planetary survival. Let's dismantle this dangerous fantasy.
The glorification of fracking and natural gas as pillars of "dominance" ignores the glaring truth: methane, the primary component of "natural" gas, is a greenhouse gas 84 times more potent than CO2 over 20 years.
Pennsylvania's fracking boom has already made it one of the largest methane emitters in the U.S., with satellite data revealing colossal leaks from infrastructure.
To frame this as "dominance" is to celebrate arsonists for lighting a match in a drought.
The climate crisis demands less fossil fuel extraction, not more. Every new well drilled is a death sentence for frontline communities and future generations.
Sacrificing Public Health
Pennsylvanians living near fracking sites have long suffered the consequences: contaminated water, toxic air pollution, and a spike in respiratory illnesses.
Studies link fracking to low birth weights, cancer clusters, and increased hospitalizations.
Their silence on these human costs is telling.
It dismisses marginalized rural and low-income communities as collateral damage in the fossil fuel industry's profit quest.
This isn't "dominance"—it's environmental racism.
Economic Mirage: Boom, Bust, and Broken Promises
Fossil fuel boosters tout "job creation," but Pennsylvania's shale gas boom has been a classic extractive rollercoaster: fleeting jobs followed by busts, leaving communities with depleted resources and polluted land.
Meanwhile, renewable energy jobs now outnumber fossil fuel jobs nationwide and grow faster.
Solar and wind technicians are the future; clinging to gas is economic malpractice.
True energy leadership requires investing in industries that won't abandon workers when the next price crash hits—or the planet boils over.
Energy Dominance or Energy Colonialism?
These politicians parrot the industry's "energy dominance" slogan—a euphemism for exporting fracked gas to foreign markets.
This isn't about American strength; it's about turning Pennsylvania into a sacrifice zone for multinational corporations.
Liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports inflate domestic energy prices, enrich executives, and lock Global South nations into fossil dependency.
Real leadership would mean exporting clean technology, not climate chaos.
The Renewable Revolution Is Here
Pennsylvania has abundant wind, solar, and geothermal potential.
Yet these fossil fuel advocates cling to 19th-century energy logic, ignoring the plummeting costs and soaring efficiency of renewables.
Solar power is now the cheapest electricity in history. Battery storage innovations are overcoming intermittency.
The true path to dominance lies in leading the global transition—not lagging behind it.
In the end, what we're hearing from Senator McCormick and other members of Congress is simply fossil fuel industry manifesto, divorced from scientific reality and moral responsibility.
Its vision of "dominance" is a relic of the past, one that condemns us to climate catastrophe, poisoned communities, and economic instability.
Pennsylvania—and the world—deserve better.
It's time to stop romanticizing extraction and start investing in a future where energy doesn't come at the cost of human health or a livable planet.
Anything less isn't just dangerous—it's a death warrant.
Power Interfaith represents over 50 unique congregations in Southeastern and Central Pennsylvania. We are people of faith committed to the work of bringing about justice here and now.
We believe that faith can bring us together more than it can divide us and that our varied faith traditions call on us to act to make our communities and our nation better places to live.
(Photo: POWER Interfaith Executive Director Bishop Dwayne Royster speaks during the Fight For Our Future: Rally For Climate, Care, Jobs & Justice on April 22, 2022 in Malvern, Pennsylvania. (Lisa Lake / POWER Interfaith via Getty Images).)
Resource Links:
-- Environmental Hearing Board Agrees There Is ‘Acute’ Danger In CNX Misusing A Deposition In An Appeal Before The Board To ‘Punish’ An Environmental Advocate For Her Advocacy Against CNX [PaEN]
-- Late Night Dumping II: Conventional Oil & Gas Wastewater Dumping Continues On Roads, This Time With Bigger Trucks; New Research On Harmful Wastewater Impacts [PaEN]
-- PA American Water Begins Construction Of Pipeline To Provide Replacement Water For Dimock Township Residents Who Had Wells Contaminated By Shale Gas Drilling 20 Years Ago In Susquehanna County [PaEN]
-- Environmental Health Project Releases New White Paper: PA's Shale Gas - What We Can Do Now To Better Protect Public Health [PaEN]
-- New Report: Shale Gas Industry Expected To Drill 8,400 More Wells In PA; 171 Shale Wells Abandoned So Far; Shale Well Plugging Expected To Cost Up To $8.5 Billion [PaEN]
-- University Of Pittsburgh School Of Public Health Studies Find Shale Gas Wells Can Make Asthma Worse; Children Have An Increased Chance Of Developing Lymphoma Cancer; Slightly Lower Birth Weights [PaEN]
-- State Dept. Of Health Pushing For Changes To Reduce Adverse Health Impacts From Natural Gas Development [PaEN]
Related Articles This Week:
-- PA Elected Officials, Consumer, Clean Energy Advocates Demand Electric Grid Operator PJM Act To Hold Down Electricity Costs [PaEN]
-- Guest Essay: Doubling Down On Pennsylvania's Fossil Fuel Extraction Is A Direct Threat To Public Health And Ecological Stability - By Pamela Darville, Co-Chairperson of Climate Justice and Jobs Team at POWER Interfaith [PaEN]
-- DEP Seeking Qualified Contractors To Deliver Energy-Saving Upgrades Across PA As Part Of Penn Energy Savers Program [PaEN]
NewsClips:
-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Electric Bills In PA Are Going Up Next Month, Your Utility Can’t Help It
-- WVIA: Bradford, Northumberland, Tioga And Union Utility Customers Face Rate Hikes
-- PUC Reminder Of June Hearings On Proposed 11% Columbia Gas Rate Increase
-- Erie Times: Nearly 15,000 Penelec Customers In Erie, Millcreek Without Power For A Time
-- Inquirer: These 26 Philly-Area Schools Getting State-Paid Solar Energy Facilities And Taxpayers Could Benefit
-- MCall Letter: Republican Cong. Mackenzie Needs To Fight For Federal Clean Energy Tax Credits
-- Reuters: US Electricity Generation Capacity Additions To Slow Sharply If Federal Clean Energy Tax Incentives Repealed
-- PennLive Guest Essay: PA’s Potential Data Center Mirage And Your Electric Bill - By Athan Koutsiouroumbas, Long Nyquist And Associates [Lobbying Firm]
-- Inside Climate News: Alabamians Want Answers About A 4 Million Square Foot A.I. Data Center Coming To Their Backyards
-- Detroit Free Press: Michigan Public Service Commission Chair Says There Is No Energy Emergency To Justify US DOE Order To Keep Coal-Fired Michigan Power Plant Open, Will Only Increase Customer Costs
-- Utility Dive: President Aims For 400 GW Of Nuclear Power By 2050, 10 Large Reactors Under Construction By 2030
-- AP: Get Ready For Several Years Of Killer Heat, Top Weather Forecasters Warn
[Posted: May 29, 2025] PA Environment Digest
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