Among the primary concerns homeowners who live near gas and oil development have is whether and how the activity is affecting their water supply.
These are wholly understandable questions when considering the fact that a major well is being drilled thousands of feet underground to access and then extract petroleum back through the underground layers and to the surface. Somewhere between the origin of the gas and the light of day lies many homeowners’ water wells, and when gas and oil production is not done well, that water can be compromised – by the gas itself, or by chemicals used to maximize its capture. There is abundant technology and technique available to avoid this, and gas and oil operators should employ these and other best practices at all times.
A study released Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that a series of drinking-water wells in close proximity to gas development in Pennsylvania contained a chemical often used in fracking. While it did not go so far as to conclude that the gas wells are, without a doubt, the source of the material, the study’s thorough look at the area’s geology, as well as the methodology used in drilling those wells, led to the finding that they were the likely culprit of the chemical’s presence in the water. The study is interesting for several reasons.
Least of these is the altogether predictable response it has drawn from the gas and oil industry, which says, correctly that the chemical in question – 2-Butoxyethanol or 2BE – also is found in paints and cleaning products.
Katie Brown, a consultant who does advocacy work for the Independent Petroleum Producers of America, told The New York Times that, “The entire case is based around the detection of an exceedingly small amount of a compound that’s commonly used in hundreds of household products,” Brown said.
It is true that the 2BE levels were extremely low in the water tested – below the threshold deemed a health risk – but Brown overlooks two key factors in her dismissal of the findings: First is the fact that water wells farther from the gas wells in question showed no sign of the chemical; the second and more instructive piece is that the gas wells thought to be the source of the 2BE were drilled without adequate casing to protect against such contamination.
The study reveals how critical it is for the gas and oil industry to be aware of its neighbors’ concerns and respond to them by developing methodologies that avoid dangerous conflicts between the industrial gas and oil activity and the residential use that adjacent homeowners seek to enjoy.
In the Pennsylvania example, the researchers found that the suspect gas wells had cement- and steel-casing for the first 1,000 feet but then lacked it thereafter. They were drilled before the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s 2011 recommendation that casing extend deeper to prevent contamination. Had that practice been in place before, it is likely that the water wells would have been untouched by the 2BE.
This week’s study illustrates how important it is to employ such protective measures. While fracking fluid may contain substances that are helpful to the gas-production process, those same chemicals also may be harmful to humans, animals and the environment. When these substances are used, then, the standard for safety must be high. Unfortunately, the lesson often is learned after a breakdown, but the knowledge garnered nonetheless is crucial.
