You’ve seen Don Young’s name in Blotch and the pages of Fort Worth Weekly many times in the past eight years, ever since gas drilling became prevalent near parks, schools, homes, rivers, and lakes.
Prior to that, Young was just a quiet, relaxed glass maker who spent his free time hiking at Tandy Hills Natural Area in east Fort Worth.
When gas drillers began eying Tandy Hills, Young took action. Now he’s typically labeled an environmentalist, concerned citizen, activist, rabble-rouser, or worse.
Over the years, I’ve come to know him as a friendly naturalist, movie buff, and community volunteer who would rather not fight City Hall and Big Oil, but stepped up because few others would.
Here he is on Monday being interviewed by CNN about gas drilling near cemeteries, in particular a cemetery near Handley where Young’s father is buried.
The New York Times reported on the story as well.
Here is Young’s postmortem on the national media exposure:
“In their latest angle on covering the dangers of drilling-fracking, the national media is fixated on the dead. While I welcome almost any media attention to the most important environmental/human health issue of our times, this one is kind of like a red herring, distracting the public from more important issues. When the media came calling last week to inquire about my long-dead father I did my best to steer them back on track. We all have respect for the dead but when industry is fouling the planet at a breakneck pace we must focus on the living. One thing is certain: Fort Worth, Texas is not safe for either.”
