States which have allowed energy companies to begin the destructive process of drilling and fracking are discovering the disastrous consequences for groundwater resources. Once the damage is done, it becomes nearly impossible to measure, let alone correct. We the citizens of Illinois must not let this happen here.

Fracking is too dangerous and destructive to be conducted safely. Fracking cannot be safely regulated. Illinois must ban fracking now.

I am a Board Trustee in Alto Pass, Union Co. IL. Our town Board has banned Fracking within our City limits, however many people do not know that simply by owning their home, farm, winery, or guest lodging that they do not own the mineral rights under their property. Tourism is a large part of our counties economy and if Fracking moved in and undermined our local bans it could destroy a huge part of our income. As a village we studied the pros and cons of Fracking and with a Geologist we determined it was not something we want in, near, or around our village. Fracking goes horizontally as well as vertically. We do not trust the integrity of the big Energy Companies to care about our bans and geology knows no town, county or state lines. We want it banned in Southern Illinois altogether.

Illinois still has the chance to keep fracking out of our state, as Vermont and over 250 U.S. communities have done. We need brave legislators who will sponsor a bill to ban fracking in Illinois. We need this law to protect our environment and our health. We need this bill because promises of economic benefits from fracking just don't materialize as promised and other states are being left to cope with fracking's mess.

fracking pollutes drinking water, destroys farmland, and causes climate change. State legislators could decide this month whether to pave the way for fracking in Southern Illinois—a process by which massive amounts of water and toxic chemicals are injected into the ground to reach previously inaccessible oil and gas. Standing up to the oil and gas industries isn't easy, State representatives are unlikely to do it unless they hear from constituents. Please sign this petition to have your voice heard by our representatives.

Oil Fracking has proven to be unsafe. It leaks deadly chemicals into the water table which our children drink and get very sick from. Rather than oil spills in lakes, there are unseen deadly chemical spills in ground water that can kill our children. We must protect the lives of our children by banning fracking.

Every resident of Illinois is at risk from the environmental devastation caused by fracking. This includes polluted drinking water and air, and the destruction of farmland throughout the state. Once fracking begins, the damage cannot be undone, so we must ban fracking now before it is too late.

Let's face it. Injecting massive amounts of chemical into the earth's sediments is dangerous. It threatens our water supply and our underground aquifers and it threatens our health and our safety. We have no idea what chemical mix goes into our water or what long-term effect it will have on our health. Until we know, let's ban fracking in California

Don't potentially poison the water and air anymore than necessary in Cali. I won't know if it has affected me until I'm already dead.

An oil industry insider recently told Politico that if California—known as a progressive and Democratic state—moves forward with fracking, "it will be a lot harder to paint the practice as an extreme process that risks the health and safety of individuals." Fracking—injecting massive amounts of water and toxic chemicals into the ground to reach otherwise inaccessible oil and gas—is an extreme process, with catastrophic results. Fracking threatens our water, our air, our farms, and our health—and contributes to global warming. Don't Frack California. You can publicly support a fracking ban in California and we want you to do that!

Fracking—injecting massive amounts of water and toxic chemicals into the ground to reach otherwise inaccessible oil and gas—is an extreme process, with catastrophic results. Fracking threatens our water, our air, our farms, and our health—and contributes to global warming.

Please help stop the movement toward "Fracking" in Illinois. Fracking poses many risks to our water and food supply.