THE PRICE OF SAND Silica Mines, Small Towns, and Money
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“The Price of Sand” is a documentary about the frac sand mining boom in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Due to a rapid increase in demand, pure silica sand has become a valuable commodity, and mines are opening here at a rapid rate.
The silica used in hydraulic fracturing (aka : “fracking”), has other uses– glass manufacturing and toothpaste, for instance — and a few established mines have been in operation here for decades. But now, new companies have arrived, and land with accessible silica deposits is selling for high prices.
In addition to a bonanza for a few lucky landowners, the new mines promise jobs and economic stimulus for the small towns and rural areas nearby.
Midwest Pictures, LLC
Director/Executive Producer: Jim Tittle
60 minutes
2013
REVIEWS AND ARTICLES
In Frac Sand Land, Residents Have Little Protection Against Silica Dust Exposure
BY JENNIFER KRILL – JUNE 24, 2013
Earth Island Institute
Wisconsin is bearing the brunt of the impacts of the country’s burgeoning frac sand industry. More than 100 frac sand mines have cropped up in the state in the past five years.
The Price of Sand Movie Review
June 13, 2013
By Ellen Cantarow