Is water contamination a result of Marcellus ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock.ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. is one of the most highly productive types of sedimentary rock whose density provides tight stores forhydrocarbon reserves below. Marcellus ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. is a rock formationA body of earth material with distinctive and characteristic properties. running through about two-thirds of Pennsylvania, and areas of New York and West Virginia. Geologists estimate that there is a large enough natural gas reserve within the shaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. to power the United States for one to eight years. drilling? 

The study suggests a potential widespread contamination of rural drinking water from drilling in the Marcellus ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock.ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. is one of the most highly productive types of sedimentary rock whose density provides tight stores forhydrocarbon reserves below. Marcellus ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. is a rock formationA body of earth material with distinctive and characteristic properties. running through about two-thirds of Pennsylvania, and areas of New York and West Virginia. Geologists estimate that there is a large enough natural gas reserve within the shaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. to power the United States for one to eight years..

“Some of these landowners have a legitimate complaint. It looks like there’s a real problem,” said Robert Jackson, an environmental chemist at Duke University.  The study did not find evidence that hydraulic fracturingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force.Refers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. fluid or flowback waste is getting into drinking water.  The contamination was being caused by the chemical methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. – which is a main component in natural gasA naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon gases beneath the earth’s surface – often in association with petroleum..  The study found methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. content was 17 times higher within 3,000 feet of drilling than water farther away.

The gas industry is knocking the study saying there is no baseline for proof on drilling wells causing the methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. contamination.   The industry is upset because there are firm accusations with no data to back it up.  With many counterclaims going back and forth, researchers plan to back into the field to test wells where gas was drilled since the samples were taken last year.  The researchers at Duke – who originally conducted the study – have recommended more research into the medical effects of methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. exposure and also more on the disposal of fracturingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. fluid.

The research team tested 68 wells in Pennsylvania and New York finding that 85 percent of them had some amount of methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products..  The team found that within 3,000 feet, the concentration spikes upward sharply and the chemical makeup more closely resembles the deep shaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. the gases are producing.  Within a kilometer of drilling, the methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. levels found were 17 times higher than areas not being drilled in.  This is higher than the level at which federal coal mine regulators recommend immediate action.

John Conrad, a groundwater geologist from upstate New York, says the researchers are quick to blame drilling when they have not compare the same water wells before and after drilling.  “This is possibly an interesting trend,” said Conrad, who has worked with the Independent Oil & Gas Association of New York. “But with this small number of data points and no baseline data, it doesn’t prove it. It might reflect the amount of gas that’s always been there.”

America’s Natural GasA naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon gases beneath the earth’s surface – often in association with petroleum. Alliance (ANGA) stated that the study compares “apples to oranges” and criticized the study for not including where the groundwater samples were taken.  “We welcome serious, fact-based scientific inquiries into how we do our work,” ANGA said. “Upon initial review, however, this study lacks key data that would be needed to validate its conclusions.”

Critics have long contended that frackingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. could be contaminating drinking water.  But industry representatives have said it cannot be because the fluid is injected too deeply underground more than a mile beneath the earth’s surface.  The Duke researchers said the gas they found in the water is not coming up through rocks from the pressure of fracturingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force., but coming up through the wellbore.  The study found no evidence of contamination from hydraulic fracturingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force.Refers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. fluids or saline produced waters and that not all water wells close to drilling operations had methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. – suggesting that the methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. leakage is not an inevitable side effect of drilling but improperly run drill pipeA hollow, thick-walled, steel piping that is used on drilling rigs to facilitate the drilling of a wellbore and comes in a variety of sizes, strengths, and weights. They are hollow to allow drilling fluid to be pumped through them, down the hole, and back up the annulusA part, structure, or marking resembling a ring...

Could the contamination be caused by leaky well casings?  As for now, we don’t really know the answer to that.  However, the gas companies are not required to disclose the chemicals used in fracturingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. fluid.  Governments are pushing the Congress should order federal regulation of fracturingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. under the Safe Drinking Water ActFederal law that regulates drinking water quality. (SDWA) – but this law has never officially passed.

Case #1

In Dimock, PA a laboratory worker kneeled before a gushing spigot behind a landowner’s house and positioned an empty bottle under the clear, cold stream.  The process is then repeated dozens of times as the bottles are filled and packed into coolers.  After this testing is complete, the landowner and nearby neighbors will know what is lurking in their well as federal regulators investigate claims of contamination in the midst of one of the nation’s most productive gas fields.

The landowner currently lives near a pair of gas wells drilled in 2008 and water started to become discolored a few months ago – with a strange odor and taste.  Suddenly, the resident’s dogs and cats refused to drink it.  That being said, the landowner is hoping the testing will provide answers.

If something is wrong with the water, who is responsible? Who fixes it and what does it do to the value of the property?  These are questions asked by many current landowners and they all want answers to these questions who are all unsure if their water is safe to drink.

In Pennsylvania, it was reported that huge volumes of partially treated wastewater were being discharged into rivers and streams that supply drinking water.  While the frackingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. wastewater was asked to be monitored, a loophole in the policy allowed many oil and gas drillers to continue discharging significant amounts of wastewater into treatment plants.

“We have been clear that if we see an immediate threat to public health, we will not hesitate to take steps under the law to protect Americans whose health may be at risk,” said Terri White, an Environmental Protection AgencyFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment. (EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment.) spokeswoman in Philadelphia.

The EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment. investigations are being conducted amid reports of possibly drilling-related contamination in several Pennsylvania communities. Some residents in these areas claim that the state agency has failed to hold drillers accountable.

In Dimock, EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment. staff are inspecting well padsArea that has been cleared for a drilling rigThe physical apparatus used to drill and frack wells. These are large portable operations that are assembled on site and disassembled when the well has been capped or brought into production. to work on a plot of land designated for natural gas and oil extraction. and natural gasA naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon gases beneath the earth’s surface – often in association with petroleum. compressor stations for compliance with water and air quality laws.  Some residents say their water wells were contaminated after Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation drilled faulty gas wells that leaked methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. into the aquiferUnderground bed or layer yielding ground water for wells and springs. and spilled many gallons of frackingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. fluid.  Cabot denies responsibility for the methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products..  The EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment. suggests immediate action needs taken.  Residents are paying additional money for bottled water – at an estimated $500 per week.

The EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment. is Investigating

As stated above, the controversy has attracted the attention of the U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment..  The EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment. has announced it will conduct a comprehensive $1.9 million study to investigate the impact hydraulic fracturingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force.Refers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. may have on water quality and public health.

The mixed chemicals being injected into the wells during frackingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. are raising concerns of increased methaneMethane, commonly known as natural gas is the most common hydrocarbon gas. It is colorless and naturally odorless, and burns efficiently without many by products. in drinking water. The frackingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. process releases natural gasA naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon gases beneath the earth’s surface – often in association with petroleum. from the shaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock., but the EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment. said there are concerns the process may degrade surface and ground waterThe supply of fresh water found beneath the earth’s surface, usually in aquifers, which supply wells and springs. Provides a major source of drinking water. and pose a serious threat to ground waterThe supply of fresh water found beneath the earth’s surface, usually in aquifers, which supply wells and springs. Provides a major source of drinking water., human health and the environment.

The EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment. is in the early stages of designing a hydraulic fracturingRefers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force.Refers to a method used by producers to extract more natural gas from a well by opening up rock formations using hydraulic or explosive force. research program. Dr. Paul Anastas, assistant administrator of EPAFederal agency that regulates industrial impacts on the environment.’s Office of Research and Development, said the research will be conducted in a “transparent, peer-reviewed process, with significant stakeholder input.”

***The Marcellus shaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock.ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. is one of the most highly productive types of sedimentary rock whose density provides tight stores forhydrocarbon reserves below. Marcellus ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. is a rock formationA body of earth material with distinctive and characteristic properties. running through about two-thirds of Pennsylvania, and areas of New York and West Virginia. Geologists estimate that there is a large enough natural gas reserve within the shaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. to power the United States for one to eight years. could hold as much as 363 trillion cubic feet of natural gasA naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon gases beneath the earth’s surface – often in association with petroleum., enough to supply the nation’s gas needs for up to 15 years. The gas bonanza has resulted in a boom in well permitting and construction. Statewide, approximately 2,500 Marcellus shaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock.ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. is one of the most highly productive types of sedimentary rock whose density provides tight stores forhydrocarbon reserves below. Marcellus ShaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. is a rock formationA body of earth material with distinctive and characteristic properties. running through about two-thirds of Pennsylvania, and areas of New York and West Virginia. Geologists estimate that there is a large enough natural gas reserve within the shaleA fine grained sedimentary rock composed mostly of consolidated clay or mud. Shale is the most frequently occurring sedimentary rock. to power the United States for one to eight years. gas well drilling permits were issued from 2007 through 2009 by the state Department of Environmental ProtectionThis state agency has permitting and primary regulatory authority over the natural gasA naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon gases beneath the earth’s surface – often in association with petroleum. industry in the state., which projects another 5,000 permits will be issued this year.