Water Concerns Halt Energy Development in Northeast

Due to concerns over drinking water contamination, Chesapeake Energy has decided not to drill for natural gas within New York City's watershed.

Chesapeake Energy had proposed to drill for natural gas in the region using "hydraulic fracturing" to open shale gas deposits that have, until recently, been uneconomical for development. In recent years, hydraulic fracturing has become increasingly utilized by oil and natural gas companies looking to develop domestic energy supplies. But the process is not without its risks, which happen to primarily be water contamination. As an article from Environmental Leader notes:

Hydraulic fracturing, the technology that has opened shale gas deposits across the country to profitable drilling, continues to be exempt from the U.S.’s safe drinking water law because of a loophole — called the Halliburton loophole — included in the 2005 energy bill, according to EARTHWORKS.

In June 2009, Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) together with U.S. Reps. Diana DeGette (D-CO), Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), and Jared Polis (D-CO) introduced companion Senate and House bills, called the FRAC ACT — Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act, amending the Safe Drinking Water Act (H.R. 2776 and S. 1215) — to repeal the exemption provided for the oil and gas industry, ensuring that hydraulic fracturing is regulated to protect drinking water. The legislation would require them to disclose the chemicals they use in their hydraulic fracturing processes.

Currently, the oil and gas industry is the only industry granted an exemption from complying with the Safe Drinking Water Act, according to the legislators.

Hydraulic fracturing, also known as “fracking,” which is used in almost all oil and gas wells, is a process where fluids are injected at high pressure into underground rock formations to blast them open and increase the flow of fossil fuels. This injection of unknown and potentially toxic chemicals, including diesel fuel, benzene, industrial solvents, and other carcinogens and endocrine disrupters, often occurs near drinking water wells, according to the legislators.

There are a number of cases in the U.S. where hydraulic fracturing is the prime suspect in incidences of impaired or polluted drinking water including Alabama, Colorado, New Mexico, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming, reports EARTHWORKS.

Hydraulic fracturing will certainly be an emerging issue that river and watershed protection groups should stay informed on. Check back for more on this topic.