Up Date for those concerned about this process

Tim McElwain

Research & Development 



<img src="http://cdn.smartbrief.com/images/shim.gif" width="1" height="1" alt="Right-click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy, Outlook prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet." /><a></a><ol><li><a href="http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/dmuOBYgqdOCbpnzHCicOiyCicNxUoz?format=standard">Study finds no direct link between water pollution, fracking</a></li></ol>

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There is no direct connection between hydraulic fracturing and groundwater pollution, according to preliminary findings of a report from the Energy Institute of the University of Texas at Austin. "From what we've seen so far, many of the problems appear to be related to other aspects of drilling operations, such as poor casing or cement jobs, rather than to hydraulic fracturing, per se," said Charles Groat, a professor at the university who is leading the project. The study aims to "separate fact from fiction" and produce accurate data that will help in the implementation of sound policies, Groat said. <a href="http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/dmuOBYgqdOCbpnzHCicOiyCicNxUoz?format=standard">[u][color=#0000ff]Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Texas)[/color][/u]</a><span style="color:#666666"> (11/9), </span><a href="http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/dmuOBYgqdOCbpnzICicOiyCicNzYWA?format=standard">[u][color=#0000ff]Platts[/color][/u]</a><span style="color:#666666"> (11/9)</span> <img src="http://cdn.smartbrief.com/images/briefs2/common/sm_share.gif" width="34" height="14" alt="Right-click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy, Outlook prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet." /> <a href="http://r.smartbrief.com/resp/dmuOBYgqdOCbpnAkCicOiyCicNhwlW"><img src="http://cdn.smartbrief.com/images/briefs2/common/linkedin.gif" width="14" height="14" alt="Right-click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy, Outlook prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet.

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icesailor

Contaminated Groundwater:

Sorry Tim, coming from them, there couldn't be a disparaging word. Not ever.

I just read an article in my latest issue of Water Well News about drillers doing ground water heat pump loops who aren't grouting bore holes properly and having contaminants go down the improperly sealed casing and contaminating the ground water below. Natural Gas, being under the high pressure it is, will be more than happy to take any advantage of a poorly grouted casing. And travel UP.  I read of a case that is fully documented in Pennsylvania where a ground water aquifier was contaminated in a form of this way. The cause of the leakage was poorly trained or untrained drillers not knowing what they were doing or using the wrong grout. The worst problems were when they drilled through layers of Karst and huge amounts of grout were needed to fill the spaces. And needing to go back numerous times to fill the drop..

And poor grouting procedures were the cause of the Macondo site disaster in the Gulf of Mexico last year or so. And that wasn't supposed to happen.

Fracking will go on, there's no stopping it. Big oil and gas gets what they want. We get to pay their price. But the report from a University in Texas comes with kooties on it for this jaundiced reader.

Sorry.

CMG