Hydraulic fracturing, also referred to as “fracking,” is an oil and gas well development process. It has provided safe oil and natural gas extraction for over sixty years. Hydrofracking involves injecting sand, water, and chemicals under high pressure, into bedrock via a well so that necessary resources can be extracted from underground shale formations.
The continuing evolution of technology allows greater access to abundant energy sources while simultaneously reducing environmental impact.
Fracking is a widely debated political and environmental issue. Advocates consider it a safe, economical source of clean energy, while naysayers claim that fracking could destroy drinking water supplies, pollute the air, and contribute to global warming. So, what’s the truth?
Let’s do some research.
Consider this guide your crash course on all things fracking. From safety, to environmental impact, as well as selecting the best liners for containment, the following information will answer many foundational questions.
Is Fracking Really Safe?
When the proper environmental protocols and precautions are in place, hydraulic fracking is very safe. The drilling technique employed in fracking is a surprisingly thoughtful, clean method of securing necessary sources of power to meet our country’s energy needs for decades.
Fracking has unlocked massive supplies of oil as well as clean-burning natural gas from dense deposits of underground shale. These supplies increase our nation’s energy security. This improves our ability to heat homes, generate electricity and power vehicles for today’s world, as well as future generations.
How is Safety Established During Fracking?
The process of fracking involves drilling a borehole into the ground up to a depth of 1.5 miles. Because of this, safety needs to be a top priority. Precautionary measures are put in place surrounding the borehole. These include several layers of protective steel casing, in addition to cement casing and liners.
Preserving water quality in aquifers is the top priority in the fracking process. A major part of this job is performed by hydraulic fracturing liners. These are commonly employed in frac pads, frac pits, and in a multitude of other uses. These liners form the layers of separation and protection needed between groundwater and potential contaminants.
What are the Biggest Risks around Hydraulic Fracturing?
Opponents of fracking claim that the oil industry whitewashes fracking's effects and believe that fracking contributes to groundwater contamination, health problems, and pollution.
Due to these claims, the U.S. government has sent teams to investigate the safety of fracking across the country. It is worth noting that the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) released a report in recent years detailing the results of a limited field study that monitored hydraulic fracturing. They discovered that there was not any detectable upward migration of fluids or gas from the hydraulically fractured shale. Likewise, the study found no evidence that any chemicals from fracking had contaminated groundwater at the examined drilling site.
Does Fracking Cause Earthquakes?
Many areas of the United States, like Ohio and Oklahoma, are not considered earthquake-prone, but have experienced relatively strong seismic activity in the last few years. A 2016 study found that the chances of earthquakes occurring in these parts of Oklahoma and neighboring states are just as likely today as they are in quake-prone California. Many critics say that this is due to fracking, since the shaking has increased at the same time as oil and gas production in these areas.
The caveat? Other states that are hotbeds for new drilling like Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota, have stayed seismically quiet. So, why would fracking cause seismic activity in Ohio and Oklahoma but not these states? Is fracking really the cause?
Not quite. Two new studies explain why these specific regions are rattling more than others. Hidden faults in Oklahoma beneath the surface are primed to pop, according to a study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The study does not draw any links between Oklahoma's earthquakes and oil and gas drilling.
It’s worth noting that many of these faults were previously unknown. McNamara, a U.S. Geological Survey research geophysicist based in Golden, Colorado. reports that these faults are all found in rock layers that existed well before anyone was drilling for oil.
Are Hydraulic Fracturing Proppants Dangerous?
A proppant is a solid material, usually sand or manmade ceramic materials, that are designed to keep induced hydraulic fractures open during a fracturing treatment. Proppants are also added to fracking fluid, which can vary in composition depending on the type of fracturing employed. These proppants aid in achieving the right balance of viscosity, flow velocity, and pressure demands, to save energy in high-volume fracking operations.
According to a twenty-year-old study of the Orito Field in Colombia, only around 15 percent of proppants are removed after the fracking is done. So, is it dangerous to leave these foreign substances in a place where they weren't originally found?
Even with sand propping open cracks, the weight of the overlying rock causes them to close over a matter of months. In fact, the rock’s permeability returns to almost the same level as it was before fracking ever took place. As a result, fracking needs to be done quickly, before these cracks close.
