Gasland

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  2. Pages with broken file links
  3. 2010 films
  4. English-language films
  5. American documentary films
  6. Documentary films about environmental issues
  7. Documentary films about fossil fuels
  8. Environment of the United States
  9. Films set in Pennsylvania
  10. 2010s documentary films
  11. Hydraulic fracturing


For the Norwegian politician and psychiatrist, see Anders Gåsland.
Gasland
File:Gaslandlogo.jpg
Directed by Josh Fox
Produced by Trish Adlesic
Molly Gandour
Josh Fox
David Roma
Written by Josh Fox
Narrated by Josh Fox
Cinematography Josh Fox
Editing by Matthew Sanchez
Distributed by New Video Group
Release date(s)
  • January 24, 2010 (2010-01-24) (Sundance)
Running time 104 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Box office $49,428

Gasland is a 2010 American documentary film written and directed by Josh Fox. The film focuses on communities in the United States impacted by natural gas drilling and, specifically, a stimulation method known as hydraulic fracturing.

Synopsis

In May 2008, Josh Fox received a letter from a natural gas company offering to lease his family’s land in Milanville, Pennsylvania for $100,000 to drill for gas.[1]

Following the lease offer, he looked for information about natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale under large parts of Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio and West Virginia. He visited Dimock, Pennsylvania where natural gas drilling was already taking place. In Dimock, he met families who demonstrated on camera how they were able to light their running tap water on fire. They also claimed to be suffering from numerous health issues related to contamination of their well water.

Fox then set out to see how communities are being affected in the west where a natural gas drilling boom has been underway for the last decade. He spent time with citizens in their homes and on their land as they relayed their stories of natural gas drilling in Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and Texas, among others. He spoke with residents who have experienced a variety of chronic health problems directly traceable to contamination of their air, of their water wells or of surface water. In some instances, the residents are reporting that they obtained a court injunction or settlement monies from gas companies to replace the affected water supplies with potable water or water purification kits.[2]

Throughout the documentary, Fox reached out to scientists, politicians and gas industry executives and ultimately found himself in the halls of Congress as a subcommittee was discussing the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act, "a bill to amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to repeal a certain exemption for hydraulic fracturing."[3] Hydraulic fracturing was exempted from the Safe Drinking Water Act in the Energy Policy Act of 2005.[4]

Making appearances in the film are Dr. Theo Colborn, founder of the Endocrine Disruption Exchange (TEDX); John Hanger, Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP); Dr. Al Armendariz, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator for Region 6; Wilma Subra, MacArthur Award-winning chemist; Calvin Tillman, Mayor of Dish, Texas; Weston Wilson, EPA scientist; members of Congress Diana DeGette (Colorado), Dan Boren (Oklahoma), and Maurice Hinchey (New York); Albert Appleton, former New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner; Scott Stringer, Manhattan Borough President; and James Gennaro, New York City Council Environmental Board Chair.

Production

Gasland was conceived, directed, primarily filmed and narrated by Josh Fox. This is his second documentary, his first was entitled Memorial Day. The executive producers of Gasland are Debra Winger and Hunter Gray; producers are Trish Adlesic, Fox and Molly Gandour; co-produced by David Roma; cinematographers are Fox and Matthew Sanchez; editor is Matthew Sanchez; supervising sound editor is Brian Scibinico;[5] animators are Juan Cardarelli and Alex Tyson; consultants are Morgan Jenness and Henry Chalfant and researchers are Molly Gandour, Barbara Arindell, Fox and Joe Levine.[6] The film is dedicated to the non-profit organization Damascus Citizens for Sustainability.

The documentary was made in about eighteen months. Fox began the project as a one man crew, but was joined by three other cameras at different points.[7] Matt Sanchez is credited with the structure of the film and together with Fox edited roughly 200 hours of footage to about 100 minutes.[8]

Gasland premiered at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The film is currently on the film festival circuit and premiered on HBO on June 21, 2010.

On November 1st, 2010, REACT to FILM screened Gasland at the SoHo House in Manhattan, NY and moderated a Q&A with Gasland producer Trish Alesic and environmental specialist Katherine Nadeau.[9]

State of Colorado

The State of Colorado’s Department of Natural Resources issued a statement regarding what it viewed as “several errors in the film’s portrayal of the Colorado incidents.”[10]

Weld County

In a scene from the film, Weld County landowner Mike Markham is shown with director Josh Fox igniting gas from a well water faucet in his home with a cigarette lighter, which the film attributes to natural gas exploration in the area. In 2008, The Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) investigated a complaint made by Markham alleging that nearby natural gas operations impacted his domestic water well.[11] A Colorado Oil and Gas Information System (COGIS) report stated that Markham’s water "appears to be biogenic in origin." Biogenic methane is natural gas that is generated by methanogen bacteria.[11] The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission uses the origin of the methane, either biogenic or thermogenic, to determine whether or not the groundwater contamination can be attributed to natural gas drilling. According to the agency, natural gas drilling does not lead to the presence of biogenic methane.[10] The 2008 COGIS report concluded that "there [were] no indications of oil & gas related impacts to [Markham's] water well." Markham’s water well was drilled through four different coal beds containing biogenic methane gas[10]. COGCC similarly reported that the water well belonging to Weld County landowner Renee McClure, also featured in the film, "showed naturally occurring biogenic methane gas" unrelated to oil and gas activity in the area.[12] Dr. Anthony Ingraffea, D. C. Baum Professor of Engineering at Cornell University, whose research has involved fracture mechanics for more than 30 years, has said that drilling and hydraulic fracturing can liberate biogenic natural gas into a fresh water aquifer. That is, just because gas is biogenic does not necessarily indicate that it reached a well by natural means.[13]

The COGCC concluded that a well belonging to Weld County landowners Jesse and Amee Ellsworth, also featured in the film, contained thermogenic methane that was attributable to oil and gas activity in the area. The report states that Mrs. Ellsworth and an operator in the area had reached a settlement in that case.[10]

A 2011 study in Pennsylvania and New York states found a tendency for concentrations of methane to be greatly elevated in groundwater near fracking wells, with potential explosion hazard; the methane's isotopic signatures and other geochemical indicators were consistent with a thermogenic origin in the deep shale formations. The authors of the study note that there are several ways this methane could have migrated into the groundwater, of which migration directly through the rock is the least likely.[14]

Garfield County

Gas seeping from land owned by Lisa Bracken in Garfield County, Colorado was found to be the result of fermenting organic matter in the West Divide Creek wetlands surrounding her property.[15] The film claims that the gas seep was caused by hydraulic fracturing in the West Divide Creek area. EnCana Oil & Gas was fined $371,200 by the COGCC and a moratorium was imposed on drilling in the West Divide Creek, Colorado area, where underground geological faulting had contributed to drilling problems. The moratorium was lifted after new drilling rules were put in place to protect water.[16]

Dave Neslin, Director of the Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission, offered to speak on camera with Gasland director Josh Fox during filming. Neslin requested that he be allowed to review any material that would be used in the film because "the issues are technical and complex and arouse concerns in many people." The statement concludes that "Such a discussion might have prevented the inaccuracies noted above." Director Fox refused those terms, which would have given editorial control to COGCC for this segment of the documentary.[10]

Reception

Critical response

Gasland currently holds a 97% rating on the film site Rotten Tomatoes based on 37 reviews.[17] Mark Kermode of BBC Radio 5 Live gave it a generally positive review, criticizing its similarity to other recent oil documentaries, yet praising its "extraordinary visual kick". He said "it is a very interesting story which is made better by the fact that the visuals of it are very poetic, very lyrical", and felt that its themes and ideas were relevant and well presented.

Robert Koehler of Variety referred to it as "one of the most effective and expressive environmental films of recent years… Gasland may become to the dangers of natural gas drilling what Silent Spring was to DDT.”[18]

Eric Kohn of IndieWire wrote, "Gasland is the paragon of first person activist filmmaking done right… By grounding a massive environmental issue in its personal ramifications, Fox turns Gasland into a remarkably urgent diary of national concerns."[19]

Stewart Nusbaumer of the Huffington Post wrote "Gasland... just might take you from outrage right into the fire of action."[20]

The Denton Record Chronicle said “Fox decides that his own backyard in Pennsylvania isn’t his exclusive property... Set to his own banjo music and clever footage, Gasland is both sad and scary... if your soul isn’t moved by the documentary, yours is a heart of shale."[21]

In a blog-post for Forbes magazine, Dr. Michael Economides, an oil and gas industry analyst and Chairman of the Board of XGAS, a natural gas firm, commented on the Gasland scene of "a man lighting his faucet water on fire and making the ridiculous claim that natural gas drilling is responsible for the incident. The clip, though attention-getting, is wildly inaccurate and irresponsible. To begin with, the vertical depth separation between drinking water aquifers and reservoir targets for gas production is several thousand feet of impermeable rock. Any interchange between the two, if it were possible, would have happened already in geologic time, measured in tens of millions of years, not in recent history."[22] Economides claims that almost any "gas leak" from sources within and around a home has the potential to produce flammable tap water.

Fort Worth Business Press writer John-Laurent Tronche talks about the growing number of documentaries “that aim to shed a light on what they call a dirty, destructive practice: shale gas exploration. And although oil and gas supporters have labeled the motion pictures as radical propaganda, a local drilling activist said they’re part of a larger, critical look into an ever-growing industry."[23]

Bloomberg News critic Dave Shiflett wrote that Fox "may go down in history as the Paul Revere of fracking."[24]

Chicago TimeOut gave Gasland four out of five stars.[25]

Energy in Depth, a Washington, D.C. based oil and gas industry group,[26] has created a web page with a list of claimed factual inaccuracies in the documentary.[27] In response to the EID's list of claimed factual inaccuracies, the Gasland website offers a complete point-by-point rebuttal.[28]

In Australia, film critic Julie Riggs called the documentary a "horror movie, and a wake-up call."[29][30]

In response to Gasland's key scene of burning gas from a water tap makers of FrackNation posted a billboard on Route 17 in Rock Hill, N.Y saying that "burning water" phenomenon was observed in that area since the 17th century.[31]

Awards

Wins

  • 2010 Environmental Media Award for Best Documentary Feature
  • 2010 Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize
  • 2010 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival Artistic Vision award
  • 2010 Thin Line Film Festival Audience Award
  • 2010 Yale Environmental Film Festival Grand Jury Prize
  • 2010 Sarasota Film Festival Special Jury Prize
  • 2011 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming (Josh Fox)

Nominations

References

  1. ↑ Australia's Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) film page on Gasland. 2010-11-19
  2. ↑ Quoted from the Gasland documentary itself, at about minutes 35-40.
  3. ↑ 111th United States Congress. "S. 1215: Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals (FRAC) Act." 2010-04-27
  4. ↑ Energy Policy Act of 2005. Pub. L. 109-58, TITLE III, Subtitle C, SEC. 322. Hydraulic fracturing. 2011-02-06
  5. ↑ "Brian Scibinico". imdb. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1717240/. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
  6. ↑ Sundance Film Festival. “Artists Interview at Sundance and About the Film.” 2010-04-24.
  7. ↑ MakingOf. "Interview: Josh Fox." 2010-02-25. 2010-05-04.
  8. ↑ IndieWire. “Sundance ’10: Gasland Director Josh Fox on Being a One Man Crew.” 2010-01-22. 2010-04-24.
  9. ↑ Alk, Nell. "New Doc Digs into Gas Business Controversy". NBC New York. http://www.nbcnewyork.com/blogs/niteside/Gasland-film-screening-at-soho-house106512719-106525389.html. Retrieved 17 February 2012.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 Statement of the State of Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) regarding Gasland
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Weld County landowner Mike Markham's complaint
  12. ↑ Weld County landowner Renee McClure's complaint
  13. ↑ Affirming Gasland
  14. ↑ Script error
  15. ↑ "Have You Seen This Movie?". Well Servicing Magazine. http://wellservicingmagazine.com/have-you-seen-movie. Retrieved 13 May 2012.
  16. ↑ "February 23, 2009-Oil, gas panel to revisit concerns about seep in water south of Silt (Grand Junction Sentinel) | The Water Information Program". Waterinfo.org. http://www.waterinfo.org/node/2929. Retrieved 2011-07-13.
  17. ↑ "Gasland (2010)". Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gasland/.
  18. ↑ Koehler, Robert (2010-01-25). "Gasland Movie Review from the Sundance Film Festival". Variety. http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117941971.html. Retrieved 2010-04-24.
  19. ↑ Kohn, Eric (2010-01-30). "The Toxic Avenger: Josh Fox's 'GasLand'". indieWIRE. http://www.indiewire.com/article/the_toxic_avenger_josh_foxs_gasland/. Retrieved 2010-04-24.
  20. ↑ Nusbaumer, Stewart (2010-02-18). "Big Sky Doc Film Fest: Gasland Fuel for Justice". The Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stewart-nusbaumer/big-sky-doc-film-fest-emg_b_467605.html. Retrieved 2010-04-24.
  21. ↑ Breeding, Lucinda (2010-02-18). "'GasLand' Worthy of Sundance Accolades". Denton Record-Chronicle. http://www.dentonrc.com/sharedcontent/dws/drc/entertainment/stories/DRC_ThinLine-Gas_0218.12b0b4621.html. Retrieved 2010-04-24.
  22. ↑ Economides, Michael (2010-04-22). "Slurring Natural Gas with Flaming Faucets and Other Propaganda". Forbes.com. http://blogs.forbes.com/greatspeculations/2010/04/22/slurring-natural-gas-with-flaming-faucets-and-other-propaganda/. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  23. ↑ Tronche, John-Laurent (2010-04-12). "Drilling Documentaries Abound as Shale Gas Goes Nationwide". Fort Worth Business Press. http://www.fwbusinesspress.com/main.asp?ArticleID=12434&SectionID=45. Retrieved 2010-12-07.
  24. ↑ Shiflett, Dave (2010-06-21). "Cook a Hamburger, Blow Up Your Polluted Town". Bloomberg. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-06-21/cook-a-hamburger-and-blow-up-your-polluted-fracking-town-tv.html.
  25. ↑ Kenigsberg, Ben (2010-11-24). "Gasland - Film - Time Out Chicago". Chicago.timeout.com. http://chicago.timeout.com/articles/film/90743/gasland-film-review. Retrieved 2011-07-13.
  26. ↑ Honan, Edith (2010-06-17). "Film challenges safety of U.S. shale gas drilling". Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE65G2OC20100617. Retrieved 2010-06-28.
  27. ↑ Energy in Depth (June 9, 2010). "Debunking GasLand". http://www.energyindepth.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Debunking-Gasland.pdf. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
  28. ↑ "Affirming Gasland". 2010-07. http://1trickpony.cachefly.net/gas/pdf/Affirming_Gasland_Sept_2010.pdf. Retrieved 2010-12-21.
  29. ↑ "Movietime - 19 November 2010 - Gasland". Abc.net.au. 2010-11-19. http://www.abc.net.au/rn/movietime/stories/2010/3069918.htm. Retrieved 2011-07-13.
  30. ↑ "RN Australia Talks - 8 December 2010 - Australia Talks Movies: Gasland". Abc.net.au. http://www.abc.net.au/rn/australiatalks/stories/2010/3085718.htm. Retrieved 2011-07-13.
  31. ↑ "FrackNation" filmmakers post pro-fracking billboard negating "Gasland" misconception

External links

es:Gasland fr:Gasland it:Gasland nl:Gasland no:Gasland pl:Kraj gazem płynący sv:Gasland


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