Studies Find Fracking does Not Pollute Aquifiers | Russell T. Rudy Energy LLC
According to a recent article in “Rigzone”, two different studies recently concluded that fracking, per se, does not pollute aquifers. Both studies were conducted in the Marcellus shale in Pennsylvania.
The DOE monitored fracking fluids from six wells for eighteen months using tracer fluids, seismic monitoring and other tests in the most detailed public report to date. It concluded that the brine, sand and chemicals used in fracking stayed about 5,000 feet below drinking water supplies.
Another study conducted by Avner Vengosh of Duke University, published in “The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences”, confirmed the conclusions of the DOE study. While it found that faulty well construction could cause pollution, the process of fracking itself did not.
One interesting finding from the DOE study was that cracks from fracking can extend as far as 1,900 feet from the well bore, as opposed to several hundred feet which had been previously assumed. However, researchers attributed these extremely long cracks to pre-existing fault lines.
To read the article in its entirety, please go to www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/135066/Landmark .
