shale gas drilling linked with water contamination
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

Shale gas drilling linked with water contamination

Arab Today, arab today

Arab Today, arab today Shale gas drilling linked with water contamination

WASHINGTON - AFP

Well water near shale-gas drilling sites in the eastern United States carried high levels of leaked methane, researchers said Tuesday, placing a further question mark over this fast-growing energy source. Scientists tested water samples taken from 68 private wells in five counties in Pennsylvania and New York to explore accusations that "hydro-fracking" a contested technique to extract shale gas contaminated groundwater. Methane was found in 85 percent of the samples, and at sites within a kilometer (0.6 mile) of active hydro-fracturing operations, levels were 17 times higher than in wells far from such operations, said the study by researchers at Duke University in North Carolina. "In these rural areas, almost everybody has a well that they are using the groundwater for some purpose they are using it for drinking, for their livestock, for agriculture," lead author Stephen Osborn told AFP. However, little is known about the health impacts of consuming methane in drinking water. "We were surprised, and we have spoken with many health officials," he said. "There is really no literature that address that particular issue the physiological response is methane really non-reactive in the body? What are the effects of consuming high concentrations of methane?" The paper found no evidence of contamination from the chemicals used to fracture the rock or from "produced" water the wastewater that emerges from the wells after the shale has been fractured. Shale gas is found in dense sedimentary rock which is fractured by large volumes of water, sand and chemicals that are piped in horizontally at very high pressure. After the fracturing, large amounts of water return to the surface within a few days, along with significant amounts of methane, which comprises the bulk of the shale gas. The gas is enjoying a boom in North America and Europe, buoyed by high prices and fears over the political risks of imported fossil fuels. Opponents say the technique is environmentally destructive because the methane can contaminate groundwater and, if leaked to the air, add to the greenhouse effect. The study, published on Monday in the peer-reviewed journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), said the methane sampled near the fracking sites had an isotopic fingerprint that pointed to its source. Water from wells farther from the gas sites had lower levels of methane and a different isotopic signature. As a gas, methane is flammable and causes suffocation. In April, scientists from New York's Cornell University found that current extraction techniques meant that shale gas carried a greater carbon footprint than oil, coal and conventional gas over at least a 20-year period. According to the US Department of Energy, total domestic production of natural gas will grow by 20 percent by 2035. Shale gas alone will increase its share of production from 16 percent in 2009 to 45 percent in 2035.

arabstoday
arabstoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

shale gas drilling linked with water contamination shale gas drilling linked with water contamination

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

shale gas drilling linked with water contamination shale gas drilling linked with water contamination

 



GMT 06:46 2017 Wednesday ,04 October

Pope to bless icon for Holy Family Journey to Egypt

GMT 15:51 2017 Tuesday ,22 August

FVP informed on arrangements for Sudan in meetings

GMT 04:55 2016 Monday ,03 October

Alec Baldwin nails it as Trump on ‘SNL’

GMT 21:15 2017 Tuesday ,19 September

Security forces intensify their presence in Kirkuk

GMT 03:39 2017 Saturday ,30 September

Al Jawaheri economic improvement

GMT 10:29 2018 Saturday ,06 January

Siniora meets German Ambassador

GMT 06:27 2017 Tuesday ,26 December

Embassy in Russia marks National Days

GMT 19:06 2017 Thursday ,05 January

Moral policing in Maharashtra, too

GMT 11:49 2017 Wednesday ,26 April

OIC Condemns Attack on Military Base in Afghanistan

GMT 18:35 2017 Monday ,27 February

UK foreign secretary leaves Egypt
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday