Shale Gas Drilling and Groundwater Quality in Northern Pennsylvania
Wednesday, June 19, 2013: 3:05 p.m.
Paul Wendel, Ph.D.
,
Department of Education, Otterbein University, Westerville, OH
Shaker Ramasamy, Ph.D.
,
Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
Bingqing Liang, Ph.D.
,
Department of Geography, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA
Wayne Ford
,
Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
Tyler Stauffer
,
Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
Logan Wiest
,
Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
Brandon Drake
,
Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
John Sepiol
,
Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
This study examines water quality related to shale gas extraction in Tioga County, Pennsylvania by horizontal drilling and slick-water hydraulic fracturing. In Phase I (October 2010 through May 2011), 57 private drinking water wells less than 500 m from the nearest gas drill site (mean distance = 291 m) and 41 private drinking water wells greater than 500 m from the nearest gas drill site (mean distance = 1,965 m) were selected by a randomization procedure, sampled, and tested for pH, conductivity, barium concentration, and strontium concentration. Barium and strontium were chosen as analytes because numerous studies found high concentrations of barium and strontium in flow-back fluids following hydraulic fracturing. Statistical tests revealed no statistically significant difference between water samples taken less than 500 m from the nearest gas drill site and water samples taken more than 500 m from the nearest gas drill site, and, furthermore, no statistically significant correlation was found between distance to the nearest drill site and analyte concentrations. In Phase II, each of the 98 water wells are being resampled and analyzed (October 2012 through May 2013). Since 2010-2011, gas wells have been drilled less than 500 m from each of the 41 wells originally greater than 500 m from the nearest drill site, enabling predrill/postdrill comparison for these sites in addition to longitudinal comparison of water samples taken from sites originally less than 500 m from the nearest gas well. Data and findings from both Phase I and Phase II will be presented.
Paul Wendel, Ph.D., Department of Education, Otterbein University, Westerville, OH
Paul Wendel serves as visting assistant professor of science education at Otterbein University.
Shaker Ramasamy, Ph.D., Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
Shaker Ramasamy is professor of chemistry at Mansfield University and chairs the Department of Chemistry and Physics. He specializes in analytical chemistry.
Bingqing Liang, Ph.D., Department of Geography, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA
Bingging Liang serves as instructor of geography at the University of Northern Iowa, where she specializes in remote sensing, GIS, and GPS.
Wayne Ford, Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
Wayne Ford completed a B.S. in chemistry from Mansfield University.
Tyler Stauffer, Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
Tyler Stauffer is a student at Mansfield University.
Logan Wiest, Department of Earth and Environmental Science, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA
Logan Wiest is a graduate student in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at Temple University.
Brandon Drake, Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
Brandon Drake is a student at Mansfield University.
John Sepiol, Department of Chemistry and Physics, Mansfield University, Mansfield, PA
John Sepiol is a student at Mansfield University.
