U.S. Fracking's Larger Implications

[waltky]

Fracking wastewater becoming leading environmental issue...

Ohio quakes could incite fracking policy shift
Tue Jan 3,`12 – In Ohio, geographically and politically positioned to become a leading importer of wastewater from gas drilling, environmentalists and lawmakers opposed to the technique known as fracking are seizing on a series of small earthquakes as a signal to proceed with caution.

Earthquakes caused by the injection of wastewater that's a byproduct of high-pressure hydraulic fracture drilling, aren't new. Yet earthquakes have a special ability to grab public attention. That's especially true after Saturday's quake near Youngstown, at magnitude 4.0 strong enough to be felt across hundreds of square miles. Gov. John Kasich, a drilling proponent, has shut down the wastewater well on which the quake has been blamed, along with others in the area, as the seismic activity is reviewed. "Drilling's very important for our economy and to help us progress as a state, but every single person in the Mahoning Valley felt this earthquake," said state Sen. Joe Schiavoni, a Youngstown Democrat who on Tuesday called for a public hearing. "I wouldn't deem it as an emergency, but when you live in a place that you're not used to earthquakes and you have 11 earthquakes, you're concerned," he said. "We need to give them some sort of confidence or security that this is going to be OK."

Fracking involves blasting millions of gallons of water, laced with chemicals and sand, deep into the ground to unlock vast reserves of natural gas, a boon both for energy companies and a public hungry for cheap sources of fuel. That process, though, leaves behind toxic wastewater that must be expensively treated or else pumped deep into the earth. The wastewater is extremely briny and can contain toxic chemicals from the drilling process — and sometimes radioactivity from deep underground. The practice of dumping underground has been controversial in light of scant research done on potential environmental dangers, highlighted by reports of contamination of aquifers in some communities in Pennsylvania and Wyoming. Some states are reconsidering it.

A coalition of environmental groups is preparing a protest for next week's return of the Ohio Legislature. Activists opposed to increased oil and gas drilling activity across Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and West Virginia — where the Utica and Marcellus Shale formations are believed to hold vast quantities of gas — see trouble with the Ohio injection well. It took wastewater from fracking, as well as other forms of drilling. "What other business or industry isn't held accountable for its full cradle-to-grave processes?" said Deborah Nardone, director of the Sierra Club's Natural Gas Campaign. "They need to be responsible for the waste stream that they've created." Ohio's closure of the well will have little to no impact on drilling, said Travis Windle, a spokesman for the Marcellus Shale Coalition, an industry group based in Pennsylvania. Four of the five wells that Ohio shut down were not operational, Windle said.

Pennsylvania's drillers have turned in recent months to deep-well injection of millions of gallons of wastewater because of a voluntary state moratorium last year on dumping of waste at treatment plants where the partially treated liquids are discharged into rivers and streams that drinking water is taken from. Most drillers in Pennsylvania accepted a voluntary state moratorium last year on dumping of waste at treatment plants, which had discharged the partially treated mix into rivers and streams that supply drinking water. Many drillers now recycle the drilling fluid, and some turned to deep-well injection of millions of gallons of the wastewater. Pennsylvania has six deep injection wells that currently accept fracking fluid, said Amanda Witman, a spokeswoman for the Department of Environmental Protection. But some of its waste is trucked into Ohio, where the geology allows for more injection wells.

MORE

 

[Mr. H.]

"Laced with chemicals..."?

1/2 of 1%

The natural gas industry is committed to disclosure and transparency.
Here's a link to more information.
It contains a searchable database/map where you can locate fractured wells and open a PDF that lists the makeup of frac fluids used in each job.

Home | FracFocus Chemical Disclosure Registry

 

[ABikerSailor]

"Laced with chemicals..."?

1/2 of 1%

The natural gas industry is committed to disclosure and transparency.
Here's a link to more information.
It contains a searchable database/map where you can locate fractured wells and open a PDF that lists the makeup of frac fluids used in each job.

Home | FracFocus Chemical Disclosure Registry

Transparency? Really?

Did you forget about the proprietary mixes that the companies WON'T let be made public?

 

[Truthmatters]

Ohio earthquake was not a natural event, expert says - Yahoo! News

I started a thread about it but the right avoided it

 

[Mr. H.]

"Laced with chemicals..."?

1/2 of 1%

The natural gas industry is committed to disclosure and transparency.
Here's a link to more information.
It contains a searchable database/map where you can locate fractured wells and open a PDF that lists the makeup of frac fluids used in each job.

Home | FracFocus Chemical Disclosure Registry

Transparency? Really?

Did you forget about the proprietary mixes that the companies WON'T let be made public?

I'm interested. Got anything for me to read?

 

[Mr. H.]

Ohio earthquake was not a natural event, expert says - Yahoo! News

I started a thread about it but the right avoided it

And you're avoiding a reply.

Oh- BTW, plenty of folks from the "left" are also involved in this industry.

They just happen to know what the fuck is going on, unlike armchair whacks.

 

[Truthmatters]

Its causes fucking earthquakes!

It is not safe

 

[Mr. H.]

Its causes fucking earthquakes!

It is not safe

So, you post a story that states the quake "may have been caused by..."
then follow it with that statement?

Are you always this presumptuous?

And you get no confrontation within one hour of starting the thread and then say "the right is avoiding it".

Are you always this impatient?

 

[Katzndogz]

If the left throws a virgin into a volcano the earthquake gods will not make any more earthquakes.

Which is exactly what their foolishness sounds like.

 

[ABikerSailor]

Its causes fucking earthquakes!

It is not safe

So, you post a story that states the quake "may have been caused by..."
then follow it with that statement?

Are you always this presumptuous?

And you get no confrontation within one hour of starting the thread and then say "the right is avoiding it".

Are you always this impatient?

Interestingly enough, the UK has banned fracking because of earthquakes.

 

[ABikerSailor]

"Laced with chemicals..."?

1/2 of 1%

The natural gas industry is committed to disclosure and transparency.
Here's a link to more information.
It contains a searchable database/map where you can locate fractured wells and open a PDF that lists the makeup of frac fluids used in each job.

Home | FracFocus Chemical Disclosure Registry

Transparency? Really?

Did you forget about the proprietary mixes that the companies WON'T let be made public?

I'm interested. Got anything for me to read?

Yep. Pay attention to the bolded part where they claim it's a proprietary secret.

And............if the fluid is so safe, why are so many states requiring the following?

Colorado and Texas have joined Pennsylvania in adopting rules requiring drilling companies to disclose the concentrations of all chemicals in hydraulic fracturing, the controversial procedure that injects millions of gallons underground to free natural gas and oil.

The guidelines that Colorado's regulators approved Tuesday are similar to those required by a law passed in Texas this year but go further by requiring the concentrations of chemicals to be disclosed. Colorado's rule takes effect in April.

Pennsylvania has regulations in place requiring drillers to disclose on a well-by-well basis the additives and chemicals used in fracturing fluid injected deep underground into oil and natural gas wells.

The state Department of Environmental Protection's website lists 70 chemicals and additives companies commonly use in fracking fluid, but it does not post on its website the hydraulic fluid contents used at specific wells or by the companies that supply the drillers with fracking fluid.

Some of that information is disclosed on the FracFocus.org website. But those seeking that specific information on the chemicals used in a well must get such a report at the Department of Environmental Protection's regional offices. The agency's office on Washington's Landing in Pittsburgh covers 10 Southwestern Pennsylvania counties.

In the case of Colorado, drillers claiming that the fluid's contents are a trade secret, still will have to disclose the ingredient's chemical family.
In Texas, companies must list the chemicals on a national registry, Home | FracFocus Chemical Disclosure Registry, beginning Feb. 1.

The Texas Railroad Commission adopted rules yesterday to enforce a law passed by that state's legislature.

Texas will require companies to disclose chemicals but not concentrations. Other states, such as Colorado, require disclosure of concentrations.


Read more: More states require disclosure of chemicals in fracking fluid - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review More states require disclosure of chemicals in fracking fluid - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

 

[Mr. H.]

Transparency? Really?

Did you forget about the proprietary mixes that the companies WON'T let be made public?

I'm interested. Got anything for me to read?

Yep. Pay attention to the bolded part where they claim it's a proprietary secret.

And............if the fluid is so safe, why are so many states requiring the following?

Thanks for that. Looks like disclosure and transparency to me.
BTW, I didn't use the term "so safe".
I am however still waiting for proof positive that fracking fluids habitually invade fresh water tables during the actual process.

Fracturing isn't a new phenomenon. It's been practiced for over 50 years.
What is relatively new is the absurd fear surrounding it.
And that's probably due to its recent success in unlocking trapped hydrocarbons. There's a boom going on in this country, fracturing jobs have skyrocketed, and more people are becoming aware about it. "Becoming aware" doesn't translate to understanding the entire process.

A positive development is the introduction and/or re-writing of state oil and gas regulations to accomodate this increase in activity. Individual states are capable of implementing such laws without the meddling of the EPA.

Regarding "proprietary mixes", fracking fluids or "slurries" are often customized for each particular job. Companies spend huge sums on research and development and they understandably want to protect their investment. The same can be said for the chemicals involved.

If you come across anything else I'd appreciate you sharing it.

 

[Old Rocks]

EPA Blames Fracking for Wyoming Groundwater Contamination | StateImpact Pennsylvania

For the first time, fed*eral envi*ron*men*tal reg*u*la*tors have made a direct link between the con*tro*ver*sial drilling prac*tice known as hydraulic frac*tur*ing and ground*wa*ter contamination.

The EPA released on Thurs*day its draft inves*ti*ga*tion results on water pol*lu*tion in the Wyoming town of Pavilion.

This fed*eral find*ing link*ing “frack*ing” and ground*wa*ter pol*lu*tion could have wide*spread reper*cus*sions. Sev*eral states, includ*ing New York and Penn*syl*va*nia, are in the midst of cre*at*ing new gas-drilling reg*u*la*tions. Up until this report, indus*try rep*re*sen*ta*tives, along with the head of Pennsylvania’s Depart*ment of Envi*ron*men*tal Pro*tec*tion, have said no per*sua*sive evi*dence exists link*ing frack*ing directly to prob*lems with water qual*ity. DEP Sec*re*tary Michael Krancer recently tes*ti*fied in Con*gress that the idea that frack*ing pol*lutes ground*wa*ter is “bogus.”

Res*i*dents of Pavil*ion, Wy., began com*plain*ing about drink*ing water that smelled like chem*i*cals back in 2008. Inten*sive drilling for nat*ural gas in the area began in the late 1990’s and con*tin*ued until 2006. The area now has 169 nat*ural gas wells.

The draft report says inves*ti*ga*tors have found com*pounds in Pavilion’s ground*wa*ter asso*ci*ated with frack*ing. The EPA found high con*cen*tra*tions of ben*zene, xylene, gaso*line and diesel fuel in shal*low ground*wa*ter sup*plies that they linked to waste*water pits. But the report also found a num*ber of frack*ing chem*i*cals in much deeper fresh water wells.

 

[Old Rocks]

In the West, water is a valued and often rare resource. More fights over water rights than gold. So even a few poisoned aquifers will create a huge resevoir of ill will. It is incumbent on the companies doing the fracking to assess the danger to the aquifers before drilling.

 

[Mr. H.]

EPA Blames Fracking for Wyoming Groundwater Contamination | StateImpact Pennsylvania

For the first time, fed*eral envi*ron*men*tal reg*u*la*tors have made a direct link between the con*tro*ver*sial drilling prac*tice known as hydraulic frac*tur*ing and ground*wa*ter contamination.

The EPA released on Thurs*day its draft inves*ti*ga*tion results on water pol*lu*tion in the Wyoming town of Pavilion.

This fed*eral find*ing link*ing “frack*ing” and ground*wa*ter pol*lu*tion could have wide*spread reper*cus*sions. Sev*eral states, includ*ing New York and Penn*syl*va*nia, are in the midst of cre*at*ing new gas-drilling reg*u*la*tions. Up until this report, indus*try rep*re*sen*ta*tives, along with the head of Pennsylvania’s Depart*ment of Envi*ron*men*tal Pro*tec*tion, have said no per*sua*sive evi*dence exists link*ing frack*ing directly to prob*lems with water qual*ity. DEP Sec*re*tary Michael Krancer recently tes*ti*fied in Con*gress that the idea that frack*ing pol*lutes ground*wa*ter is “bogus.”

Res*i*dents of Pavil*ion, Wy., began com*plain*ing about drink*ing water that smelled like chem*i*cals back in 2008. Inten*sive drilling for nat*ural gas in the area began in the late 1990’s and con*tin*ued until 2006. The area now has 169 nat*ural gas wells.

The draft report says inves*ti*ga*tors have found com*pounds in Pavilion’s ground*wa*ter asso*ci*ated with frack*ing. The EPA found high con*cen*tra*tions of ben*zene, xylene, gaso*line and diesel fuel in shal*low ground*wa*ter sup*plies that they linked to waste*water pits. But the report also found a num*ber of frack*ing chem*i*cals in much deeper fresh water wells.

What's with all those ateriskiskiskisks?

 

[Old Rocks]

Have no idea. Not on the linked page.

 

[Mr. H.]

I did read at the link. Very telling.
But is it damnable to the point of sounding a death knell for fracking nationwide?
Isn't this what many people want, regardless?

 

[Old Rocks]

No, I don't think that it is. But it will be if the industry disregardes the warnings and destroy aquifers. We can live without the natural gas, we cannot live without the water.

 

[whitehall]

The bottom line is that the price of energy impacts everything and democrats don't seem to care. Barry Hussein nominated a communist former leader of an arson and looting rampage to be on his "green jobs board". That shows how much he cares about energy prices. There ain't no green jobs and Van Jones is leading the OWS amateur socialist revolution today.

 

[Old Rocks]

The bottom line is that the price of energy impacts everything and democrats don't seem to care. Barry Hussein nominated a communist former leader of an arson and looting rampage to be on his "green jobs board". That shows how much he cares about energy prices. There ain't no green jobs and Van Jones is leading the OWS amateur socialist revolution today.

Sure, Whitey, sure.

ASES News: Green Jobs Overview

The renewable energy and energy efficiency (RE&EE) industries represented more than 9 million jobs and $1,045 billion in U.S. revenue in 2007, according to a new report offering the most detailed analysis yet of the green economy. The renewable energy industry grew three times as fast as the U.S. economy, with the solar thermal, photovoltaic, biodiesel, and ethanol sectors leading the way, each with 25%+ annual revenue growth.