While I think it's important that we acknowledge that many of the
problems with fracking contaminating groundwater elsewhere have been
from shallow fracking (a few hundred feet), I am worried we may
eventually face shallow fracking in NY also. Around here, the thickest
portions of the Marcellus (and thus the most worth fracking--the
"sweet spot") are a mile or more below the surface. So area geologists
(like Bill Kappel) keep assuring us that the Marcellus is so deep that
fracking there won't affect the surface layers (tho cracked casings
and surface spills can'have in other areas).
CAVEAT: lots of leases have been signed where the Marcellus is less
than 2000' below the surface (we should find out if leases specify
formations). If the price of natural gas keeps rising, and once the
infrastructure is in place for drilling the southeastern part of the
Southern Tier, will the gas companies try to move north and west into
areas where the Marcellus is closer to the surface?
I realize that there is already an increase in drilling taking place
throughout western/central NY for conventional wells (with some
fracking, but of a different order of magnitude than what is done in
the Marcellus). This is in the Trenton/Black River formation, which is
about a mile below the Marcellus. But there are been surface problems
even with these deep wells.
I suspect T/BR drilling will continue to expand because drilling
companies will either
A] find gas, or
B] find a dry well where they may be able to store polluted/
radioactive water from Marcellus wells further south/east.
Thus our whole area can look forward to trucks full of frack water
being driven on back roads and through small towns. (disposal wells
proposed for Van Etten and Pulteney are just the beginning).
Margaret
On Jan 29, 2010, at 6:18 AM, Old Bird wrote:
An article on hydro-fracking from the Province of British Columbia,
Canada
http://www.straight.com/article-282210/vancouver/lucrative-dirty-
secret
The following paragraph from the article regards an unintended
consequence of a shallow fracking event (<200 m):
[Jessica Ernst, a biologist and environmental consultant to the oil
and gas industry in Alberta, has firsthand experience of what
happens when fracking products don't stay safely underground. After
EnCana drilled and fracked several experimental gas wells in the
coulees above her home east of Calgary, Ernst said in a phone
interview, "I began to notice that my skin was burning in the
shower. I thought it was some weird early menopause thing. Then my
dogs suddenly refused to drink the water. They backed up away from
it."]
This next paragraph points to the litigation problems that may occur
even if one tries to independently acquire baseline water quality
data:
[Alberta also gives the owner of any water well exposed to proposed
fracking the right to have water from the well tested at the expense
of the gas company before development occurs. Without such a
baseline test, any later allegation blaming loss of a well's flow or
its contamination on overly energetic fracking will come down to a
"he said, she said" standoff, Simons said. Yet British Columbians
are entitled to no such predevelopment test and may even find tests
they pay for themselves disqualified on technical grounds.]
-Bill E
_______________________________________________
For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County
area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/
RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for:
[email protected]
http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins
Questions about the list? ask [email protected]
free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org
_______________________________________________
For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please
visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/
RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for:
[email protected]
http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins
Questions about the list? ask [email protected]
free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org
