Marcellus Gas Drillers May Compete For Your Water

Marcellus shale natural gas well developers are a water-thirsty lot. And far too few land holders in Pennsylvania and New York are aware of just how thirsty, contends Charles Abdalla, agricultural and environmental economist at Penn State.
Water is a critical component in the process of extracting natural gas, notes the water policy expert. According to the Susquehanna River Basin Commission, up to 5,000 wells may eventually be drilled in that river basin alone. It doesn't include those in the western third of Pennsylvania in the Ohio River basin or those in the Delaware River basin.
Water supplies to individuals, businesses and communities will be affected well into the future as this energy resource is fully developed, predicts Abdalla. The drilling process can require up to 300,000 gallons per day per well.
Hydrofracturing a deep vertical well may use 500,000 to more than 1-million gallons of water. And "fracking" a Marcellus horizontal well may use 4- to 8-million gallons of water, typically within a week, according to the SRBC. Some Marcellus wells may need to be "fracked" several times over their productive lives.
Such large water withdrawals may come from streams, ponds, rivers or groundwater. But they'll increase potential for conflicts between competing users. That's why Abdalla warns: "Citizens need to become aware of their stake in water-resource issues and policies and effectively participate in public policy-making."
To help, Penn State has updated Water Withdrawals for Development of Marcellus Shale Gas in Pennsylvania to help people understand how and where they can offer input into public decisions about water use and wastewater treatment. "Now's the time to learn about and help shape public policies that'll guide development of the Marcellus Shale," he adds.
For a free copy, contact the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences' Publications Distribution Center, 112 Ag. Administration Building, University Park, PA 16802-2602; telephone: 814-865-6713; fax: 814-863-5560. Or e-mail to AgPubsDist@psu.edu. Or click http://extension.psu.edu/water/resources/publications/consumption-and-usage/marcelluswater.pdf/view for a copy in PDF format.