Fracking Can Put Groundwater at Risk, Study Finds
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
According to Business Week, a report, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, says an analysis of 426 shallow groundwater samples found matches with brine found in rock more than a mile deep. The study suggests that brine from fracking can migrate through natural routes.
Read it:
“The industry has always claimed that this is a separation zone, and there is no way fluids could flow” from the shale to the aquifers, Avner Vengosh, a professor at the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University and one of the study’s eight authors, said in an interview. “We see evidence of hydrologic connectivity.”
Those in the industry are looking at the study in a different light:
“The good news is that the researchers make it crystal clear that the phenomena they observed had nothing to do with shale development,” Chris Tucker, a spokesman for the industry- backed group Energy In Depth in Washington, said in an e-mail.”
» Via: Business Week › Pennsylvania Fracking Can Put Water at Risk, Duke Study Finds
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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.