For all of its bluster and expensive green energy policies, Europe is lagging behind the United States when it comes to going green. Thanks to the shale boom, America is outpacing supposedly green-minded Europe on reducing emissions.

Late last week, 7,500 gallons of a coal-processing chemical leaked into West Virginia’s Elk River. That river supplied water for the state’s capital, Charleston, and in the aftermath of the spill, more than 300,000 people are without clean water. Fracking could prevent accidents like this one, but don’t expect any green to admit that.