Elevated Organic Compounds in Pennsylvania Drinking Water From Hydraulic Fracturing Surface Operations, Not Gas Wells

A recent study from Yale University revealed that hydraulic fracturing did not cause contamination in drinking water wells near the Marcellus Shale in northeastern Pennsylvania.

In their investigation, Yale researchers found no evidence that traces contamination of organic compounds in drinking water wells came from deep hydraulic fracturing shale horizons, underground storage tanks, well casing failures or surface waste containment ponds, according to a news release.

The presence of organic compounds in groundwater aquifers in Marcellus Shale were most likely releases from operations at the surface, and not migration from gas wells or deep shale layers, according to Desiree L. Plata, assistant professor of chemical and environmental engineering at Yale, who supervised the study and the study's lead author Brian Drollette, a Ph.D. student in Plata's lab.

The Marcellus Shale is known for its huge natural gas reserves, thus it has become an active hydraulic fracturing site. Over the course of three years, the researchers covered 7,400 kilometers, where they collected water samples from 64 drinking water wells.

The ground water samples contained low levels of organic compounds, in areas close to natural gas wells. It is like that these compounds entered the ground water from extraction operations above the ground surface and not subsurface migration, according to the researchers.

"These tests showed that there is some separation, both in space and time, of the materials that they're injecting into the deep horizons and the groundwater sources," Plata said.

A hydraulic fracturing fluid additive was found in the water samples, however, the chemicals did not exceed any state or federal limits. Most of these chemicals were detected since the researchers were using sophisticated and very sensitive instruments.

"The dominant chemicals that we found are industrial-sourced materials and don't have any known natural sources," Plata said.

"In general, there is a risk in any industrial activity associated with accidental failures, and we can't compare this industry to any other fuel extraction or transport process without knowing the relative volumes of spilled and transported materials," Plata said.

The researchers claimed that the results are promising and drinking water sources are affected by surface spills can be monitored and treated. This study is the largest that covered organic chemicals related to hydraulic fracturing operations. The researchers warned that this study should not be used to assess the effects of hydraulic fracturing in other areas. 

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