Study: Fracking Unlikely To Cause Quakes Big Enough To Feel
Public News Service-WV
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(06/18/12) CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A scientific study has found that natural gas hydraulic fracturing (fracking) is unlikely to cause earthquakes strong enough to feel. However, it says there is somewhat more danger from injecting the wastewater that results from the process.
Murray Hitzman, professor of Economic Geology at Colorado School of Mines, chaired the committee that wrote the report.
He says, in some cases, fracking caused earthquakes too small to be felt, but little more.
"The process of hydraulic fracturing a well, as presently implemented for shale-gas recovery, does not pose a high risk for inducing felt seismic events."
Some residents living near Marcellus gas wells have been concerned about what some have said is an increase in small earthquakes. The industry has dismissed those fears. Hitzman points out that technologies like fracking have a long track record, which should be reassuring.
"There are very large numbers of wells and/or fields, and the number of historical felt events is actually quite small."
However, Hitzman says, injecting large amounts of liquid into the earth can cause other problems. Wastewater wells have not been a big issue so far, but they are growing in size and number as the industry spreads, he says.
"If we have more wells, we have more chance of events. And if we have more events, there's more probability of higher-magnitude events."
The research committee called for more study and said the government and industry should develop ways to avoid potential problems. It also warned people drilling wastewater disposal wells to be more aware of underground faults in the rock.
The study was sponsored by the Department of Energy and done in conjunction with the National Academies of Sciences and Engineering. The full report is available from the National Academies Press at www.nap.edu.
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