Posted on 04/17/2011 6:24:30 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Oil and gas companies injected hundreds of millions of gallons of hazardous or carcinogenic chemicals into wells in more than 13 states from 2005 to 2009, according to an investigation by Congressional Democrats.
The chemicals were used by companies during a drilling process known as hydraulic fracturing, or hydrofracking, which involves the high-pressure injection of a mixture of water, sand and chemical additives into rock formations deep underground. The process, which is being used to tap into large reserves of natural gas around the country, opens fissures in the rock to stimulate the release of oil and gas.
Hydrofracking has attracted increased scrutiny from lawmakers and environmentalists in part because of fears that the chemicals used during the process can contaminate underground sources of drinking water.
“Questions about the safety of hydraulic fracturing persist, which are compounded by the secrecy surrounding the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing fluids,” said the report, which was written by Representatives Henry A. Waxman of California, Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts and Diana DeGette of Colorado.
The report, released late Saturday, also faulted companies for at times “injecting fluids containing chemicals that they themselves cannot identify.”
The inquiry over hydrofracking, which was initiated by the House Energy and Commerce Committee when Mr. Waxman led it last year, also found that 14 of the nation’s most active hydraulic fracturing companies used 866 million gallons of hydraulic fracturing products — not including water. More than 650 of these products contained chemicals that are known or possible human carcinogens, regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act, or are listed as hazardous air pollutants, the report said.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
I think the EPA is full of crap and it's just another hit on the oil, gas and coal industries.
Of some interest.
Is it just me?
If the NYT told me the sun rises in the East, I’d want a second opinion before believing it!
If Waxman and Markey are involved, it is, by logical extension, bad for the country and the citizenry.
It’s pretty evident that if energy technology and exploitation of such is not centered on “green” energy source, the enviro-libtards are against it..........=.=
The booming natural gas industry in Pennsylania is going to take a huge hit as a result of this development.
PA has huge natural gas reserve in the Marcellus Shale and just 2 years ago, the Marcellus Shale industrial boom began resulting in vey affordable natural gas for the Northeast. Thousands of jobs were created in the Quaker State.
Extracting gas from the shale in PA involves a technique called hydraulic fracturing in which crews pump millions of gallons of chemical-laced water and sand deep into the earth to splinter the dense shale and free the gas trapped inside.
Thousands of jobs are going to be affected by this development (not to even mention the effect on Natural Gas prices in this country).
Nat gas wells are 5-7,000 ft deep, water wells are a couple hundred feet deep. The fracking of wells is done in tight shale formations which are far below where water wells are located. As long as the drilling company uses proper procedures in lining the well with stell casing before fracking, the chance of these chemicals getting into the water bearing areas far above is 0.
I believe the issue is their use of chromates for corrosion and microbiological organism control. We stopped using chromates in the nuclear power industry because of their toxicity.
1. The fracking chemicals are pumped many thousands of feet below the water table. The only connection to the water table is through leaks in the bore hole. Better quality bore holes are possible.
2. There are less toxic substitutes for chromates. It means a seperate chemical for corrosion control and for microbe control.
This finding isn’t the end of fracking. It just means an adjustment in the practices
This too shall pass - the BS has a fairly short shelf-life now that the MSM does not have a monopoly. But it has caused a downtick in NG development.
The oil (mostly natural gas nowdays) fields are being fracked at 8,000 - 15,000 feet down.
Water wells? 200 feet to 800 feet. A few below 1000, but not many. Rural (single family private) wells - that are the ONLY ones actually above the fracked area - are almost never even that deep.
This is pure enviro-mental hype. Played out in Obama’s ABBCNNBCBS media.
And, I would guess, that is exactly the aim of the demonization of fracking.
They want to stop drilling ..the boom is on and there afraid of the results..Jobs jobs and more jobs...look at the unemployment rates in the oil boom states there going down...
So, the NY Slimes reporters want to drink water produced from below 5,000 feet? Let’s see, it would be at least 150 deg. F, and contain all sorts of dissolved minerals and salts in concentrations many times that of seawater and including Uranium isotopes in some parts of the country. This naturally occurring water is like the stuff erupting out of geysers in Yellowstone. Industry routinely injects water produced water from mining and oil production operations back into the ground below fresh water aquifers. The EPA actually permits over 500 hazardous material disposal wells in the US that handle foul discharges from Petroleum Refining, Metal Production, Chemical Production, Pharmaceutical Production, Commercial Disposal, Food Production, and Municipal Wastewater Treatment. The fracturing controversy is an effort to shut down all petroleum production in the United States.
OMG, benzene, a terrible carcinogen, run for the hills!
Now I would like to see the NYSlimes run a story explaining how every time you fill your car with gas you are exposed to benzene that is a component of gasoline. Maybe it would keep the libs from using gas and the prices would drop.
Except they kinda tipped their hand when they said that the part of the MARCELLUS deposit ON THEIR LANDS WILL ONLY BECOME MORE VALUABLE.
Some at Cornell are saying...Frack now....
The NY politicians have put a moratorium on ALL fracking...I'd say....follow the money!!!!
The left’s goal appears to be Soviet style living conditions. that is treasonous, IMHO.
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