![]() ![]() After the well is fracked and starts producing oil and gas, much of the fracking fluid remains underground where it could potentially contaminate groundwater if fractures connect to aquifer systems. There are many pathways to pollution from fracking. Fracking Wastewater and Pathways to Pollution In that time, researchers found that water use per well rose by up to 770 percent while wastewater (flowback and produced water) volumes increased by a high of 1,440 percent within one year one of production. Likewise, the second study reviewed six basins and charted the intensification of fracking’s water footprint, and found huge increases in both water use and wastewater in the years spanning 2011 to 2016. The first study evaluated the median water use of six basins for shale-gas and shale oil and found that shale-gas water use ranged from 390,000 to 6.27 million gallons per well, while shale-oil use ranged from 70,000 to 2 million gallons of water per well. Two recent studies from Duke University assessed the water footprint of the full life cycle (of each step) of the fracking process. The Water Footprint of FrackingĬoncern about the impact of fracking’s significant water use on local water resources, especially in dry lands, as well the potential for water pollution has led to a number of studies. Members of the public, some state and federal regulators and the environmental community have kept a close watch on the fracking process. Of primary concern is the potentially damaging impact on water resources. As fracking has become more widespread in the 22 oil and gas shale plays throughout the United States, the proximity to major population centers has raised significant public health concerns as evidenced by conflict over development in the Marcellus Shale in the Northeastern United States. While each company’s formula is a closely guarded secret, a review of the recognized 1,021 chemicals in these various proprietary mixes are known to include surfactants, biocides and even toxic substances like volatile organic compounds and carcinogens. Vital to the fracking process are the millions of gallons of fracking fluid for each well, a fluid made up of over 90 percent water. ![]() Once the production well is fully open, some “produced” wastewater flows back to the surface, and finally, the oil and natural gas is extracted. ![]() Once the well is drilled, a charge is detonated to blast fissures open, then a proprietary mix of water, chemicals and proppants (like sand, these are designed to keep the fissure open) are injected into underground rock layers at high pressure in order to further fracture the rock. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, describes a multi-step oil and natural gas extraction process, in which the fossil fuel-bearing rock formations are directionally drilled both vertically and horizontally. What is Hydraulic Fracturing, aka Fracking? Natural gas use and production has soared in recent years, but so too has the controversy surrounding the environmental, public health and social impacts of how the fuel is obtained. Often referred to as the “bridge fuel,” natural gas – at least according to the oil and gas industry – will aid in the country’s energy transition from coal to renewable sources like wind and solar. Natural gas surpassed coal and is the country’s largest fuel-source at nearly 32 percent. US oil and gas production was flagging before the so-called Shale Revolution took hold and spurred the country on to become the world’s top producer of crude oil and the overall leading producer for hydrocarbons (oil and natural gas).įracking also shook up US electricity generation. New technologies in petroleum exploration and extraction – most notably the process of hydraulic fracturing (aka “fracking”) – have unlocked unconventional oil and gas stored in impermeable shale-rock formations deep underground, making previously inaccessible deposits easier to reach. The United States is home to vast quantities of shale-oil and shale-gas, with estimates of natural gas reserves among the largest known in the world. The Explosion in US Shale-Oil and Shale-Gas Production While the fracking process has expanded oil and gas development, it has also expanded risks to water resources. Oil and gas reserves that were at one time considered inaccessible are now available to be exploited. Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a multistep extraction process in which fossil fuel-bearing rock formations are drilled and fractured using huge amounts of water.
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