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| Photo Credit: J. Schumacher |
Arkansas and Oklahoma are two of several states where companies currently drill for natural gas using a technique called hydraulic fracturing of rock layers deep in the ground to increase the release of natural gas. Both states have experienced an increased number of earthquakes and tremors in the last year or two, and residents in a growing number of locations in the U.S. where the fracking process is used have complained of contaminated ground water. Examples include flammable gas seeping into existing water wells or evidence of chemicals used during the injection process or held in waste fluid containment areas that seep into wells intended for drinking water. Drillers have maintained for years that there is no link between fracking operations and water contamination.
In Wyoming, the waste fluid pits were "clearly a source of shallow groundwater contamination. Benzene, for example, was detected in groundwater samples collected near the pits at concentrations 78 times the health standard." The EPA study also connected chemicals found in the deep monitoring wells, with those found in drinking water wells closer to the surface. In the end, more investigations are needed including the "collection of baseline data, greater transparency on chemical composition of hydraulic fracturing fluids, and greater emphasis on well construction and integrity requirements and testing."
However, the growing anecdotal and scientific evidence connecting fracking with drinking water contamination certainly calls into question the wisdom of exempting fracking fluids from regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act and granting fracking operations as categorical exceptions in the 2005 Energy Policy Act.
All Americans want as much energy independence as we can safely obtain, but the good people of Wyoming or any other state shouldn't have to live with the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry recommendation to use alternate or treated water supplies as their source of drinking water or opening windows and ventilating their bathrooms while showering to prevent any possibility of explosive hazards caused by accumulating methane. Who knows, safety in Wyoming may someday come down to no balsam scented candles while soaking in a hot tub, but nobody wants drilling companies messing with their drinking water!
The 121 page EPA draft report, which will undergo peer review and a period of public comment, is available at: http://www.epa.gov/region8/superfund/wy/pavillion/
FROM: Scott K. Johnson, "How the EPA linked "fracking" to contaminated well water," ArsTechnica.com, 12/09/11. Available online: http://arstechnica.com/science/news/2011/12/how-the-epa-linked-fracking-to-contaminated-well-water.ars/1
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