NORAH O'DONNELL: You point out part of the increase in energy production in the United States is because of natural gas. You got into a little bit of hot water yourself when you said recently that fracking, quote, isn't going to hurt anybody. But there are a lot of studies that suggest otherwise. A recent medical journal found that 700 chemicals were used in fracking in Colorado, nearly a dozen of those chemicals were linked to cancer and reproductive issues. Is natural gas production -- fracking -- dangerous?
T. BOONE PICKENS: You said when you started off, I got in trouble --
O'DONNELL: Well, I said hot water, you got in a little hot water.
PICKENS: I'm not in hot water. Listen, I have fracked over 2,000 wells in my life. And the president of the United States gets on six months ago, a year ago, and said that the -- believe it or not, he didn't say believe it or not, but -- that the Department of Energy, the DOE, developed fracking on their research, and blah, blah, blah. 30 years ago. I saw my first frack job in 1952. That's 60 years ago.
O'DONNELL: But address the question that fracking isn't going to hurt anybody, you still stand by that?
PICKENS: I absolutely stand by it, of course, I do. I mean, go back and look, there must have been over a million wells fracked. There's not anybody standing out there saying, you know, picketing Boone Pickens he fracked 2,000 wells and he ruined this and hurt somebody. No --
JEFF GLOR: But you can't completely dismiss all safety concerns? I mean, there have to be some issues, potentially, that are worth looking into, right?
[...]
PICKENS: Think with me just a second. Sure, there were things back then, 50 years ago, 30 years ago, 20 years ago, that if you come forward, my gosh, I mean, they're just aren't any complaints. But you've got some environmentalists that have got themselves, you know, in a fit over it.
GAYLE KING: But you have the story, Boone, just in Texas last month, in April a couple awarded $3 million by a Dallas jury because they said that -- because of the fracking spills and emissions from the fracking had contaminated their ranch. They argued that pollution made them sick, as well as their pets and livestock. The cows born dwarfed. And they were awarded $3 million, so somebody thinks fracking is a problem.
PICKENS: There's no question, somebody was damaged. So you've already right quick, you've proven me wrong on what I've said.
KING: But are you rethinking, that's what we're asking?
PICKENS: I don't know the circumstances of that. I don't know -- you know. But somebody was awarded $3 million. And the jury, I had to assume the jury knows what they're doing. They looked at the facts.
