The issue of whether Pittsburgh residents should allow gas drilling in our city is being hotly debated at public meetings all over town.  At the last Council-to-Go meeting in Polish Hill, this was the topic that got the most time.  Some residents don’t feel this has much to do with us.  But many people are very concerned.  The health and safety issues being experienced by people in communities where drilling is allowed are worrisome (see above, in a still from the movie: residents in some areas where gas drilling and “fracking” are allowed can light their tap water on fire due to the chemicals in their drinking water).

The movie “GasLand”, which will screen at Lili Coffee Shop on Wednesday at 7 pm, is one man’s look at this issue.  The film has been included in a number of film festivals, winning several prizes.  It has received good reviews as well; here are two, from Variety and the Huffington Post.

One reviewer said “The largest domestic natural gas drilling boom in history has swept across the United States. The Halliburton-developed drilling technology of “fracking” or hydraulic fracturing has unlocked a “Saudia Arabia of natural gas” just beneath us. But is fracking safe? When filmmaker Josh Fox is asked to lease his land for drilling, he embarks on a cross-country odyssey uncovering a trail of secrets, lies and contamination. A recently drilled nearby Pennsylvania town reports that residents are able to light their drinking water on fire. This is just one of the many absurd and astonishing revelations of a new country called GASLAND. Part verite travelogue, part expose, part mystery, part bluegrass banjo meltdown, part showdown.”

If you are among the residents who are still formulating your opinion on this issue, please consider coming to see this movie.  If Wednesday evening doesn’t work for you, stay tuned; there may be other showings in the neighborhood if there is interest.