'Avengers' Star Mark Ruffalo: Fracking Is An ‘Illegitimate’ Practice

“Avengers” star Mark Ruffalo, a vocal anti-fracking advocate, called the process of extracting natural gas “illegitimate” and described his activism as a “sacrificial act.”

“This is basically an illegitimate mining practice that’s come into popularity without having to withstand the scrutiny of any EPA oversight,” he told WNYC’s Brian Lehrer Show Wednesday.

The big natural gas reserve in the Northeast is in the Marcellus Shale, which stretches from about 100 miles northeast of New York City to West Virginia.

Ruffalo, who lives in the Hudson Valley, has been a vocal opponent of the procedure of extracting natural gas known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.

He also brushed off criticism that he shouldn’t use his fame as a platform and described his activism as a “sacrificial act.”

“I see it as part of my job,” he said. “This isn’t a cause celebre for me. It’s my life.”

Proponents of fracking say that natural gas offers significant potential benefits for local economies, energy independence, and the environment.

Compared with coal, they say, natural gas produces less greenhouse gases.