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'Gasland' Up For Oscar, After Uncovering Dangers In Natural Gas Drilling

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZe1AeH0Qz8

When Josh Fox was offered $100,000 for the natural gas drilling rights to his property in Pennsylvania, he resisted. Instead, he picked up a camera and traveled the country to find out more about what could happen on his land if he signed on the dotted line.

His film, "Gasland," aired on HBO, and is now up for an Oscar for best feature documentary. It tells the story of how hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" can cause pollution that makes tap water flammable and leads animals to lose their hair.

Under that process of fracking, millions of gallons of water, sand and chemicals are injected into the ground to break up rocks and release gas. Fox says while in office, Vice President Dick Cheney worked to have “fracking” exempted from regulations in the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Clean Air Act, even though the chemicals used can be toxic. We revisit our conversation with Josh Fox.

This segment aired on February 25, 2011.

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