with 2014 and 2015 marking a turning point where water use and the generation of flowback and produced water began to increase at significantly higher rates,”

Thanks Obama.

Indeed fracking is very water intensive, it is also why natural gas is so cheap and how the US became the worlds largest producer of oil and gas. It does in fact cause minor earthquakes in heavily fracked areas.

It is popular because it makes money and people like money, people in North Dakota may not like earthquakes or methane seeping into water supplies but they do like having jobs and money coming into their state.