A town hall Wednesday night will look at the impact of new state-issued leases allowing fracking—a drilling process for oil and natural gas—in areas of Oakland County and elsewhere.

The meeting, called by Oakland County Commissioners Jim Nash (D-Farmington Hills) and Craig Covey (D-Ferndale), is at Oakland County Commissioners’ Auditorium, 1200 N. Telegraph, in Pontiac, Michigan, on the Oakland County campus, from 6-8 pm. Sept. 12.

Fracking—or hydraulic fracturing—is a process that involves digging deep wells up to 2 miles deep, and then filling them with millions of gallons of a water/sand/chemical mixture, according to a release from the commissioners. The wells are then given bursts ofintense pressure to loosen rock formations to release natural gas. Read more about it

Why are commissioners concerned? Nash said, in a statement: "High pressure contaminated water can infiltrate the aquifer, well-head blowouts have occurred, water withdrawals affect the surrounding water table, and geologists have linked it to unusual earth tremors.”

Oakland County well driller Joe Curry, fracking specialist Drew YoungeDyke, and state Rep. Lisa Brown also will be on hand, as well as an hydraulic fracturing industry expert. There will be opportunity for questions and answers.

Newly opened areas for drilling leases include Orchard and Cass lakes, among others.