(Boise Weekly/Skylar Barsanti photo)

In opposition to what they call a dangerous path toward fracking in Idaho – the controversial method of injecting high-pressured solids and liquids into the earth to enhance gas drilling – members of Wild Idaho Rising Tide, [Idaho Residents Against Gas Extraction], and United Vision for Idaho, dubbing themselves “frack-tivists,” took to the streets of downtown Boise on June 7.

The demonstration targeted the Boise offices of the Idaho Department of Lands at Sixth and Bannock streets.  IDL is the agency ultimately responsible for oversight of the burgeoning gas exploration industry, focused primarily in and around Payette County.

“We are trying to bring attention to the fact that Idaho is about to be fracked,” demonstrator Alma Hasse told Boise Weekly.  “[Fracking is] a procedure to get gas to flow out of unconventional fields quickly and easily.  Toxic and carcinogenic chemicals are used underground to break up rock.”

Activists waved signs that read, “Idaho Says No to Dirty Energy” and “Expect Resistance: The Future is Unwritten.”  Other demonstrators expressed their displeasure in chalk-written notes on the sidewalks outside the IDL office.

Read More: ‘Frack-tivists’ Protest Outside Boise IDL Office

(By Skylar Barsanti, Boise Weekly)