Water and Natural Gas Drilling

Does the T. Boone Pickens Plan have another big problem: Contamination of Water Supply?

Or is this another way to keep US supplies from being utilized in preference to natural gas shipped to the US from foreign sources. Are the financial backers of the new natural gas pipeline on the Pacific Coast threatened by T. Boone Pickens Plan?

How much evidence is there of groundwater contamination?

The articles listed below have appeared in a single week. They appear to make a serious case that drilling for US natural gas reserves is injurious to our water supply. But is there another explanation about these recent claims?

Does Natural-Gas Drilling Endanger Water Supplies?
A debate is heating up over whether the fracturing technique used in natural-gas drilling could result in chemicals contaminating drinking water
Natural gas boom could edge into NYC watershed
But there could be a big problem ... potentially a $10 billion problem
Abington Nixes Wastewater Plan
Board of supervisors has rejected a controversial proposal to accept industrial wastewater from natural gas drilling
Intensive oil and gas production over the years around Pampa has led to higher than normal amounts of chloride in the groundwater

Buried Secrets: Is Natural Gas Drilling Endangering U.S. Water Supplies?

Image Credit: Abrahm Lustgarten/ProPublica

Several Bills Filed To Address Injection Wells
A typical injection well injects salt water (brine) and other drilling waste byproducts into the ground.

Impose needed natural gas tax
Groundwater generally flows into the voids left after the methane is removed

Not too many years ago, in a conversation over dinner, someone in the energy business stated: "If they ever figure out how to transport natural gas by ship economically, the price will drop like a rock."

Well, they may have and there are terminals being built on the US coasts to off load to new very long pipelines.

Here is some information on one of them on the coast of Oregon.

Just below is a link to get a better understanding about natural gas and its processing.

NaturalGas.org
In addition, raw natural gas contains water vapor, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), ... With natural gas that contains even low quantities of water, natural gas ...
www.naturalgas.org/naturalgas/processing_ng.asp

The debate begins.........

	WaterSupply.Com