The Colbert Report
Actor and director Mark Ruffalo recently joined Stephen Colbert to discuss an issue that continues to divide many Americans.
Appearing on the "Colbert Report" this week, Ruffalo discussed what he sees as one of the biggest problems associated with fracking, mountaintop removal coal mining and the extraction of Canada's tar sands oil. "All of these things destroy water," Ruffalo argued.
As a resident of a region impacted by hydraulic fracturing for natural gas, Ruffalo said that he feels quite passionately about water protection.
At first excited about the prospect of cheap and independent energy, Ruffalo said he changed his mind about fracking after visting Dimock, Pennsylvania. He told Colbert, "I saw what it does to families. These people can't drink the water that's coming out of their tap. Here in America."
Earlier in the interview, Ruffalo stressed the potential of renewable energy sources like "wind, water and solar." Citing the prevalence of solar energy in Germany, Ruffalo remarked "America's being left behind. We're being left behind all over the world."
In the interview, Ruffalo misspoke in stating that 30 percent of Germany's electricity is generated from solar power -- the figure is actually three percent. Although he was mistaken, he later apologized on Twitter:
Ruffalo may have been quite serious about fracking, but Colbert's distinct interview style was not lost on him. During the interview, Ruffalo admitted he couldn't disagree when Colbert joked, "We burn things better than anybody's ever burned things. America was built on burning things."
Ruffalo's organization, Water Defense, recently launched an anti-fracking campaign called "Natural Gas Exxposed." The campaign asks its supporters to "join [them] in rejecting this dangerous bridge to nowhere and working to build a renewable energy economy."
In the past, Ruffalo has also lent his support to other environmental causes. In November, Ruffalo spoke to HuffPost while attending a Keystone XL protest outside of the White House.