2
sludge- like well water. Dark warnings about dangerous “fracked gas” moving
through pipelines and entering people’s homes like an evil spirit are promulgated by
some environmentalists, even though fracked gas and non-fracked gas are essentially the same thing and can’t be told apart in a pipeline. The issue of fracking is
often intertwined with other environmental concerns about fossil fuels, such as sustainability, air and water pollution, and elevated levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) in
the atmosphere. Most GHG comes from burning coal, and has nothing whatsoever
to do with fracking (U.S. Department of Energy 2012).
Interestingly, most if not all of these “flaming faucet” photographs like Fig. 1.1
are burning methane gas created by methanogenic bacteria living in the aquifer. The
presence of methane in the groundwater supply almost never has anything to do
with nearby fracking, but it has become indelibly linked to it in the minds of many
through these images. There have been several studies (described in later chapters)
in northeastern Pennsylvania that found dissolved methane to be nearly ubiquitous
in groundwater. A number of lawsuits were unable to link shale gas development to
the presence of methane in shallow aquifers. In at least one case, attorneys found
that the occurrence of methane in the water well pre-dated the arrival of the shale
gas drill rig by at least several years.
On the other side of the issue are the proponents of fracking, primarily the oil and
gas (O&G) companies themselves. Industry people contend fracking is a mature
technology that is well-understood, safe, and has been in use since 1947 to recover
hydrocarbons. In the opinion of many, opposition to fracking is coming from nontechnical outsiders who do not understand the process. Since the O&G industry
generally can’t be bothered to actually explain the process in terms that ordinary
Fig. 1.1 A flaming kitchen faucet caused by natural gas entering a domestic water supply well in
Pennsylvania. Images like this have become linked to environmental concerns about fracking.
(Photo copyright Getty Images; used under license)
1 Introduction
sludge- like well water. Dark warnings about dangerous “fracked gas” moving
through pipelines and entering people’s homes like an evil spirit are promulgated by
some environmentalists, even though fracked gas and non-fracked gas are essentially the same thing and can’t be told apart in a pipeline. The issue of fracking is
often intertwined with other environmental concerns about fossil fuels, such as sustainability, air and water pollution, and elevated levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) in
the atmosphere. Most GHG comes from burning coal, and has nothing whatsoever
to do with fracking (U.S. Department of Energy 2012).
Interestingly, most if not all of these “flaming faucet” photographs like Fig. 1.1
are burning methane gas created by methanogenic bacteria living in the aquifer. The
presence of methane in the groundwater supply almost never has anything to do
with nearby fracking, but it has become indelibly linked to it in the minds of many
through these images. There have been several studies (described in later chapters)
in northeastern Pennsylvania that found dissolved methane to be nearly ubiquitous
in groundwater. A number of lawsuits were unable to link shale gas development to
the presence of methane in shallow aquifers. In at least one case, attorneys found
that the occurrence of methane in the water well pre-dated the arrival of the shale
gas drill rig by at least several years.
On the other side of the issue are the proponents of fracking, primarily the oil and
gas (O&G) companies themselves. Industry people contend fracking is a mature
technology that is well-understood, safe, and has been in use since 1947 to recover
hydrocarbons. In the opinion of many, opposition to fracking is coming from nontechnical outsiders who do not understand the process. Since the O&G industry
generally can’t be bothered to actually explain the process in terms that ordinary
Fig. 1.1 A flaming kitchen faucet caused by natural gas entering a domestic water supply well in
Pennsylvania. Images like this have become linked to environmental concerns about fracking.
(Photo copyright Getty Images; used under license)
1 Introduction