Many risks to offshore fracking

Your June 3 editorial (“Who’s ignoring science?”) accuses me of ignoring the science on fracking, but the peer-reviewed science shows that fracking causes pollution, harms wildlife, contributes to earthquakes, and makes people sick. That data was what the federal government discounted and ignored, relying instead on the historic infrequency of offshore fracking to justify its action.

What the report repeatedly acknowledged was that the impacts of fracking on the marine environment are unclear — citing significant data gaps and unknowns. For example, the agency lacked toxicity data for many of the well stimulation chemicals used in fracking — chemicals that are permitted to be dumped in the Pacific Ocean.

But the absence of evidence is not evidence of absence, as every freshman science student is taught. Even the state oil and gas agency urged the feds to heighten safety measures by requiring public notice, toxicity testing, updating spill response plans, and prohibiting ocean discharge of well stimulation chemicals. A letter from 32 scientists urged the agency to conduct a more thorough environmental impact statement to address the well-documented environmental and health risks of well stimulation and the significant data gaps.

Yet the feds skipped a comprehensive analysis, and instead gave the green light to offshore fracking, sweeping aside the precautionary principle (first rule: do not harm) and common sense.

Miyoko Sakashita

Oakland, Calif.

The writer is oceans director and senior counsel at the Center for Biological Diversity.

Parking fee

Recently, I had the misfortune of using the pay-for-parking system at the Aria. Already, I can predict this is going to be a disaster. There must be another system that these hotels can utilize to gain more revenue without having their customers go through this horror story.

Even as a local, where I show only my license, the line was endless. The cars had to inch up a steep incline and at the very top drivers either had to pull a card or show their licenses.

I realize this system works at the airport, but this system will not fly on the Strip. I come from the East Coast where years ago tolls were eliminated in order to help the flow of traffic. Why would any planners put a system in place that only clogs up the works?

Barbara K. Gottlieb

Las Vegas

First fired

Recent Harvard graduate and proud millennial Molly Robert’s Friday op-ed, “The first female nominee,” lists some of the firsts for Hillary Clinton. Among them was, “Unlike her predecessors, Clinton didn’t ask Americans to say no to drugs or yes to literacy. Instead, she set out to remake the health care system.”

Perhaps Ms. Robert’s should add that Hillary was also the first to be fired from that job by her own husband because her health care proposal was an unworkable mess.

J.J. Schrader

Henderson

Tour guide

In response to your recent story about the drop in tourism at the Hoover Dam:

One way to get the attendance up would be to have a more friendly website covering the dam tours. Nowhere do you see the longer tour promoted. Why not post the times? No Sunday tours? Why not allow internet purchases for the longer dam tour?

It wouldn’t hurt to lower the costs of either tour.

Tom Dahulick

Omaha, Neb.