Drillers paid just over $200 million last year, about $51 million less than in 2018. The money goes to communities where drilling happens, to help offset the effects of the industry.
A conversation with the journalist who wrote the Rolling Stone article based on his two-year investigation into the industry, worker safety and the regulatory blackhole that leaves people at risk.
The study found an estimated 26,000 lives were saved by replacing coal with natural gas, but health impacts from fracking weren't considered in the study.
