Hydro-FrackingA Primer

Introduction Hydro-fracking underlying shale rock to release trapped natural gas has recently become a

major issue in New York and Pennsylvania, where large areas may be fracked. While the fracking process has been used for other purposes, hydro-fracking of shale rock to produce unconventional gas is substantially more destructive of land and water than previous fracking. It is a new industrial technology, not just a minor change from the fracking of the past 60 years. According to Dr. Anthony Ingraffea of Cornell University, the first 1000 gas wells unconventionally developed will use more frack fluid, and produce more waste, than all 50,000 wells ever drilled in New York State. This is because of the high volume of fluid used, because of multiple wells associated with each well pad, because of the high density of well pads, and because each well may be fracked multiple times. Multiple wells increase the risk that the cement seals for each well might be damaged by drilling or repeatedly fracking the others. And over time, cement shrinks and cracks will affect well integrity. In addition, about 7% of newly completed wells fail immediately. Data on cumulative impacts from this process have not been developed. Other likely impacts include: irreversibly contaminating water supplies, industrialization of residential areas, fragmenting forest and farmland, degrading air quality, with convoys of tanker trucks affecting rural roads and communities, tourism, real estate values and wildlife. Fracking itself and injecting fracking wastes into injection wells can also trigger earthquakes.

This slide show is a quick way to quickly get up to speed and to visualize the issues involved. While the natural gas market has historically been volatile, currently prices and demand are relatively low. There is no need to rush the regulatory framework and laws for fracking in New York State.

What Is Hydro-Fracking?• Fracturing rock layers with a pressurized fluid to release petroleum, natural gas, or coal seam gas

• This is a new method of fracking which includes horizontal drilling, high volume water injection, dense well pad clustering multiple wells per pad as well as the more typical vertical drilling

• Fracking fluids include 98-99% water, sand to hold the fractures open, and many chemical additives (many toxic) for a variety of purposes

• Wells are typically drilled about 500 ft vertically and 4500 ft horizontally in Pennsylvania, but can go down much deeper

Source: CCE, citizenscampaign.org See www.citizenscampaign.org/PDFs/cce_hvhf_wp_final.pdf

A More Detailed Look

Source: ProPublica

Marcellus Shale Region in NYS

• Black shale withtrapped natural gasunderlies much of NYSand Pennsylvania. • There are other shalelayers below theMarcellus shale (ie.,Utica shale)

Estimates vary, but there is considerable gas locked up in the shale formations

Green area is the Marcellus shaleSource: CCE

Utica Shale

Extension of Utica Shale Play into Orange County Indicated by Red Arrow

EIA Map of Shale Oil/Gas Locations

Well Pad in Pennsylvania

Source: whyfiles.org/2011/fracking-fracas

Environmental Concerns

• Water use• Air pollution• Water pollution• Mishandling of wastes• Human health effects• Migration of gases tosurface• Escaped methane • Increased ozone pollutionSource: CCE

Fresh Water Use

• Fracking can require up to 5 milliongallons of water. Containers in

the photo are water containers.

Source: CCE

Chemical Additives – 12 Classes

• Proppant• Acid• Breaker• Bacericide/biocide• Clay stabilizer• Corrosion inhibitor

• Cross linker• Friction reducer• Gelling agent• Iron control• Scale inhibitor• Surfactant

Sample Additives

Source: CCE Some of the additives are toxic, mutagenic or carcinogenic

Water Pollution

9 to 40% of the injected fluid returns asflowback.

It is stored in lagoons and is ultimatelydisposed of in sewage plants and large bodies of water, or injected into deepwells. Some can be recycled into more fracking wells.

Source: CCE

Methane in WaterNumerous studies have documented serious problems associated with fracking, including:

• Clark, Wyoming – 8 million cubic feet of methane escaped, groundwater contaminated

• Dimock, PA – 13 water wells contaminated with methane

Source: CCE

Production Brine

As the well is pumped, production brine flows to the surface, and must be collected and disposed of. It can be 5x saltier than sea water. It also contains substantial radioactivity, and toxic metals from the earth. It is typically stored in lagoons and then must be disposed of.Source CCE

Radioactivity

Production brine also has substantial radioactivity, consisting of uranium and radium 226. It is many hundreds of times more radioactive than is allowed by the EPA under the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Source: CCE

Health Impacts of Radium

Source: CCE

Impacts on Climate• Methane is a strong greenhouse gas with 20-103x

the impact of CO2 (Depends on the time scale you analyse)

• Studies indicate that 3.6-7.9% of the methane extracted from hydro-fracking will leak into the atmosphere over the lifetime of the well

• Using hydro-fracked gas (shale gas) is worse for the environment than using coal or oil

• While natural gas burns more cleanly than coal, given all the associated environmental degradation and climate impacts, it’s hard to call fracked natural gas clean

Source: CCE

Regulation

• 2005 Energy Policy Act exempted hydro- fracking from all Federal oversight (Safe Drinking Water Act, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Superfund law)

• There are few if any scientific studies that have been completed on environmental impacts

• States are ill-prepared to provide proper monitoring and regulation• Regulatory framework is fragmented and incomplete • Currently in NYS, there are two processes occurring, a review of the

impacts of fracking through the draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) and draft regulations based upon the same review. (see www.CleanWaterNotDirtyDrilling.org for an update on this process) . The state has recently announced that it will do its own health study through the NYS Department of Health.Source: CCE

Multi-Well Pads Have Greater Impact

Source: CCE Up to 20 well sites are allowed for each pad.Hydro-Fracked Landscape Undisturbed Landscape

Landscape at Well Sites

Well pads, Dish, TX Well pads, Jonah, WY

Whyfiles.org/2011/fracking-fracas

Photos: skytruth.org, DamascasCitizens.org

Additional Facts• In 2005, the National Energy Act exempted hydraulic fracking from all

Federal regulation (Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, Superfund Law).

• Modern large-scale hydro-fracking began in Montana in the 1990’s. Before then very few wells were fracked and they were small ones using little water.

• Recent concerns include the possible triggering of earthquakes by the fracking process (which could allow greater movement of toxic fluids and methane) See whyfiles reference and other references.

• Methane release not only dramatically increases greenhouse gases (because of its high global warming potential) but enhances the production of ozone at ground level which is also a greenhouse gas.

• The EPA was finally commissioned to do a detailed environmental study which is due to be released in September 2012, but will occur later.

Conclusions• The chemical contamination damage from fracking to the water supply is

likely permanent. A tradeoff of “cheap” natural gas for the permanent loss of land, water and ecosystems is not a trade-off we would like to see.

• The damage to local residents from air pollution, water contamination, loss of land value, impacts on the landscape, etc. is enormous. The health effects of fracking are very real.

• There is no rush to get out the gas until all the appropriate scientific studies are done. It’s not going anywhere.

• The economic advantages of fracking for communities are highly exaggerated. (leasing arrangements, royalties, boom/bust cycles).

• There are other alternatives to heat our homes and produce electricity that do not involve the serious tradeoffs of fracked natural gas. These include: energy efficiency and energy conservation, solar heating for houses, solar heating for hot water, wind power for electricity, solar electricity, small-scale hydropower, geothermal, and other sources and technologies.

A Few Reasons Why Warwick Needs a Ban Now• Imagine industrial fracking taking place in Warwick. Looking at the very

real pictures of what takes place, do you think anybody in Warwick would want to have fracking take place next door? Or in Warwick? Or in surrounding communities? The well pads are spaced every mile or so.

• We are uncertain about what the industrial fracking technology can do, or might be able to do in the future, but we have Utica shale underlying much of Warwick. We need to think about possible threats that might occur in the future.

• Industrial fracking is totally inconsistent with Warwick’s comprehensive plan, and threatens our farms, our tourism, our small business, and our residential rural community. It would drastically affect property values since banks would not issue mortgages, and insurance agencies would cancel policies, as they are doing elsewhere.

• We have a limited time to act. Home rule allows communities to act before state regulations go into place. Now is the time to act. A ban can always be rescinded in the future. About 130, or 20% of the municipalities in NYS have already acted to restrict fracking, and more are doing it every day.

Sources• CCE, citizenscampaign.org See www.citizenscampaign.org/PDFs/cce_hvhf_wp_final.pdf • Griswold, E., “Situation Normal All Fracked Up,” New York Times Magazine, Dec. 11, 2011,

pp.42-49, 52,60 One family’s experience in PA.• The Science of Fracking: whyfiles.org/2011/fracking-fracas• www.foodandwaterwatch.org/water/fracking - (water pollution)• rfflibrary.wordpress.com/2011/04/11/methane-and-the-greenhouse-gas-footprint-of-

natural-gas-from-shale-formations/ Paper by Howarth, R.W., Santoro, R., Ingraffea, A., Methane and the Greenhouse-Gas Footprint of Natural Gas from Shale Formations (to be published in Climatic Science)

• Hydraulic Fracturing Report - (toxic substances used in fracking) democrats.energycommerce.house.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Hydraulic%20Fracturing%20Report%204.18.11.pdf (April 2011)

• Osborn, S.G. et. al., Methane Contamination of Drinking Water Accompanying Gas-Well Drilling and Hydraulic Fracturing, PNAS, May 17, 2011, Vol. 108, No. 20, 8173

• www.lhup.edu/rmeyers3/marcellus.htm (a detailed account of the PA experience)• www.propublica.org/series/fracking (news articles following the fracking issue)• www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/02/ohio-earthquakes-caused-by-waste-water-well-

drilling-n-1180094.html (deep well injection of fracking fluids causes earthquakes)• www.nature.com/news/method-predicts-size-of-fracking-earthquakes-1.9608