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“Hydrofracking” poses threats to Streams and Rivers
Posted on January 26, 2010 | Filed Under: Most Endangered Rivers , Clean Water , Water Supply
Katherine Baer
Senior Director, Clean Water Program
Energy production has a major impact on rivers with hydropower and mountaintop removal mining as obvious examples. In the rush to develop domestic sources of energy nationwide, the impacts to streams and rivers are largely ignored. Case in point – “hydrofracking” (or hydraulic fracturing) – an environmentally destructive technique to extract natural gas that has been used out West is now being used in the Marcellus Shale formation which is concentrated in parts of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia.
Hydrofracking injects large volumes of water (up to six million gallons of water per gas well) mixed with sand and toxic chemical additives at high pressures to release the gas. Most of the water is then returned to the surface as polluted wastewater – that must be treated by wastewater treatment plants already overburdened and not necessarily designed to remove these chemicals. Industry analysts predict it will cost $3 billion to treat the industrial wastewater associated with Marcellus shale development.
Local fish, and wildlife, as well as the water supply, are threatened given the amount of water that is being withdrawn. This is one of the reasons that Laurel Hill Creek was identified as one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers in 2009. Fish kills from drilling chemicals have already occurred, and drinking water contamination is widely reported.
Groundwater supplies may become contaminated with these chemicals as they already have in parts of Pennsylvania and other states. Currently, oil and gas companies that use hydraulic fracturing are exempt from regulations under the Safe Drinking Water Act that would require them to disclose the cocktail of chemicals they use. American Rivers supports the Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals (FRAC) Act of 2009 introduced by Representative Diana DeGette (D-CO) and Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) that would force companies to disclose the chemicals they use in fracking fluid. This would give communities the information they need about the pollutants that could potentially contaminate their drinking water supplies and threaten local rivers and streams.
In Pennsylvania the state is also considering water quality standards to address waste associated with Marcellus Shale exploration to better protect clean water. This is just one small move in the right direction toward a more comprehensive energy-water policy that should protect clean drinking water and seek ways to limit the effects of energy production on our rivers.
Read this article to learn more about the impacts of natural gas drilling.
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Comments List
Submitted by Marie A King at: May 19, 2010
The "success" of the deep water Gulf drilling points to the terrifying reality: in our current culture, the golden calf trumps common sense. Fresh water is our REAL treasure. Our courntry has been blessed with an abundance of it, If we destroy that, we destroy our food supply and our health. We can live without oil and gas, but not without water.
Submitted by MD JD at: April 30, 2010
Bucky Beaver is sadly misinformed. While hydrofracking is not new, what IS new is the use of "slick water" hydrofracking since the late 1990s, which now uses massive volumes of water with toxic chemicals added that had not been used in the past. The difference is quite significant. And there are no facilites anywhere in the U.S. at present that are capable of handling the frack water. Companies have no legal obligation to disclose what is in the fracking fluids, so it is not feasible to even test waters that may be contaminated when one doesn't know exactly what to test for. Bucky- go get a legal degree and a medical degree, then let's have a real conversation.
Submitted by Bucky Beaver at: February 4, 2010
The problem with taking this tact is that when the people you have scared and upset with the above inflamatory and inaccurate statements find out the truth, they will stop trusting you. Then you become one more shrill voice that they can't believe. FACT - no groundwater in pennsylvania has become contaminated with fracking fluids. NONE. ANYWHERE IN PA. FACT - Hydrofracturing is not a new technology. It has been used in PA since the 1930s. Nearly all wells in PA have been hydro-fracked. FACT - Pennsylvania law requires disclosure of the names of chemicals used in fracturing. FACT - Fish kills from frack water HAVE NOT occurred in Pennsylvania - if you are referring to Dunkard Creek, the EPA has determined the problems came from mine drainage. FACT - Oil and gas companies in Pennsylvania are regulated under state law so the loopholes in federal law do not have any bearing here. FACTS FACTS FACTS Get your facts straight so people can trust you. Otherwise, your word becomes worthless, and in the long run, the integrity of your organization becomes compromised. Please.
Submitted by hebintn at: January 26, 2010
We are determined to wreck this world one way or another. When will the force make itself known and take out the dark side?
Submitted by Don Williams at: January 26, 2010
Although the wastewater that returns to the surface is a significant problem that must be dealt with, the majority of what is pumped underground remains there; somewhere between 65-90%. The highly folded and fractured bedrock of the northeast contains natural fractures in all layers. All watersheds in the Marcellus Shale region are endangered, and the threat is growing every day.