True Confessions: That Time I Worked in Hydro-Fracking

Moving to Denver, I was having a difficult time finding work in my areas of interest (non-profit, higher education) and turned to a recruiting firm for help. When I was called on a Friday afternoon to start temporary work at an “Energy Company” on Monday, without an interview, and making a significant wage, I jumped on the opportunity. I had been unemployed for almost 5 months, and a girl’s got to pay bills, right? Plus, I knew it was temporary, so how bad could it be? Within a few days I was confronted with the hasty decision I had made to work for an oil and gas company that performs rig moves and heavy hauling for oil drilling and hydrological fracturing, or as it has come to be known, “fracking”.

Growing up in Ithaca, NY and being surrounded by educated and progressive individuals has given me the values that our earth is a sacred place, and that we need to be very cognizant of the impact we are having on our environment when we think about it as an energy resource. Because of this upbringing, my core environmental values stem from the belief that renewable energy and conservation practices should be a large focus all over the globe because one day the oil and gas will run out. Not might…will.

So there I was, a staunch opponent of hydro-fracking, working for a company that’s main goal is to assist companies like Shell, BP, and Conoco Phillips move their oil and gas rigs. This company touted the industry, emphasizing in corporate-wide meetings the benefits and lucrative nature of oil and natural gas drilling.

I found myself in a particularly uncomfortable company luncheon in which the question of the safety of “fracking” came up and the answer they gave shocked me. Environmentalists were portrayed as wealthy and antagonistic of the oil and gas industry, which was subsequently portrayed as the clear victim in this conversation. The rhetorical devices utilized by Senior Management were alarming, saying things like “sometimes they use chemicals in hydro fracturing, but a lot of times they don’t!” as if this exception made it OK, which it seemed to be to the general employee group as I watched them all nod their heads in agreement. Senior Management also touted that the ground water around fracking sites was “drinkable” and that “most companies are doing it safely.” For me, most is not OK.

I wear my heart on my sleeve and I’m sure everyone in that room saw how uncomfortable this conversation was making me.

Once I became aware of the industry I was working in and supporting on a day to day basis, I knew I had to get out. Luckily for me, I was not a hired employee for the company, but rather through a staffing firm, so my work was deemed ‘temporary’ from the beginning. As weeks progressed, however, there was push from the management and even the president of the company for me to consider coming aboard full time, based on the performance I had demonstrate thus far. Because I knew that was simply not an option, I quickly resumed the never ending job search.

So what was the take away from this experience? That oil and gas is evil and hydro-fracking is a dangerous industry? Maybe, but then again I could also be using rhetorical devices that already appeal to a liberal audience. The versus game will continue forever, and while my stance is apparent, I am not interested in engaging much further in the fight against big oil and gas. Fracking in Colorado is not the same as fracking in NY/PA where I’m from, because of the terrain and the state-specific standards, so it isn’t productive for me to make ill-informed blanket statements about the horrors of fracking in our nation.

I took a more personal lesson out of this experience. I needed to find a job that aligned with my values. We spend so much of our time at work and not having this alignment can feel like a heavy burden. I certainly felt that burden working at this place for only 5 weeks.

Sure, I can push it aside, focus on a paycheck or how I’m “just grateful to be working.” All of us will not love our jobs. They might not be our dream jobs, we might not want to retire from them, but if we don’t support the work that they do and their message and vision, it will be that much harder to clock in every morning.