Chemicals found in wastewater samples pose risk to environment, public health
Saturday, January 17, 2015
The discovery of ammonium and iodide in wastewater from a West Virginia storage tank and a Pennsylvania wastewater treatment site has raised more concerns about public health and environmental impacts, The Charleston Gazette reports.
Ammonium converts to ammonia when placed in water and poses a threat to aquatic life. When mixed with chloride to treat drinking water, iodine can cause toxic byproducts to form.
A group of scientists from Duke University, Dartmouth College and Stanford University studied water samples produced from conventional and unconventional wells, flowback water from fracked well sites and waste samples that leaked into streams. The samples came from sites in Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia and Arkansas.
This study is the first to document the existence of ammonium and iodide in oil and gas wastewater.
Via: The Charleston Gazette > Study finds contaminants in natural gas wastewater
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Shale FAQ
What is fracking?
Fracking is a slang term for hydraulic fracturing. Fracturing is a process by which highly pressurized fluid is pumped thousands of feet into the ground to fracture rock formations. The goal is to release the natural gas that’s locked inside the rock.
Is it safe?
What most concerns people about fracturing is ground water contamination. The worry is that fractures underground, caused by the process, will extending upwards and into aquifers, releasing gas and chemicals into the ground water supply. There’s been no confirmed reports of such a thing happening. Though surface spills and drill site blowouts can lead to localized environmental concerns.
Will my water catch on fire?
Flammable water is caused by the release of methane gas into a drinking water supply. Methane gas occurs naturally and can be released by any kind of drilling, including water wells. In Pennsylvania officials fined Chesapeake Energy $1 million for contaminating ground water with methane. It was determined that the company had not properly cemented it’s boreholes and gas migrated up the well, between rock and into aquifers.