FRACKING, FLOCCING, AND FRACK-SAND MINING

Transcription

1 FRACKING, FLOCCING, AND FRACK-SAND MINING Kelvin S. Rodolfo, Professor Emeritus Department of Earth & Environmental Science University of Illinois at Chicago Kickapoo Earth Day, Kickapoo Valley Reserve, La Farge WI, April 19, 2014

2 Topics What is fracking? Where is fracking done? What are frac sands? How did the Driftless area s frac sands form? Environmental consequences of frac-sand mining Fracking won t happen here, so is it OK for us to provide sand for fracking elsewhere?

3 TRADITIONAL OIL AND GAS SITUATION Most traditional oil/gas traps are now empty; fracking extracts oil and gas DIRECTLY from the source shales Impermeable cap rock Natural gas Oil Reservoir rock, porous sandstone Source rock: fine-grained clay shale holding tiny dispersed oil droplets and/or bubbles of natural gas clinging to clay grains. Over millions of years, the gas and oil migrates up to

4 Unlike traditional production from oil traps in very rare places under small areas, fracking operations are very widespread and involve many more drilling rigs. Two consequences: 1. Many more people are affected.

5 A Fracking Operation in Pinedale, Wyoming.

6 2. Fracking costs much more energy to produce each barrel of oil or cubic foot of gas. Energy Returned over Energy Invested (ERoEI or EROI): Can more energy be spent to produce a barrel of oil than the energy contained in that barrel...?

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8 Frack wells produce very little oil and gas after 5 years. This graph is from the North Dakota Industrial Commission. Actual production has been shown to be only about 55% than anticipated.

9 Hydraulic fracturing; induced hydraulic fracturing; hydrofracturing; hydrofracking. Wells drilled 1-2 miles deep into fine-grained shale, then horizontally 1-2miles. Fracking fluid under high pressure (5,000 PSI) fractures the shale. Fluid: water and many chemicals, plus strong, round sand grains ( proppants ) to prop fractures open so gas or oil can escape and be collected.

10 12 mi le s 5,000 psi 2-3 million US gallons of water per fracking well, plus 100,000 gallons of chemical additives of varying toxicity, plus ±10,000 tons of sand per well.

11 Oil and Gas Drilling in the U.S. Since 1950 Fracking boom Active Drilling Rigs , , , 00 0 U.S. Oil Production, Millions of Barrels per Day Despite greatly increased drilling, oil production has increased only a little Sources: Baker Hughes, Inc., Energy Information Administration, and Green Econometrics Research

12 ... But U.S. Natural Gas Production is Booming! Fracking produces much more gas than oil.

13 Oil/Gas shale prospect areas None in WI, IA, MN, but frac sand is abundant!

14 Wisconsin frac-sand mining July 2011 May 2013: 131 mines and processing facilities (Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism) wi-frac-sand/

15 North America million years ago Eq uat or LAND LaFarge Most of North America covered by a tropical sea no deeper than 100 feet. Areas were sometimes above and sometimes below sea level for tens of millions of years. Granites and other rocks far north of our area were sources of quartz sands. www3.interscience.wiley.com:8100/.../le08_26.jpg

16 Frac sand (30 to 60 grains side by side sizes span one inch) Mesh# 8/12 10/20 20/40 70/140 Size, mm Size, inch Preferred and most widely used Ideal proppants : Hard, tough, chemically durable, round Quartz grains Granite: Typical original source of quartz grains. When weathered and worked by streams, waves and the wind for tens of millions of years, all minerals are destroyed except quartz grains, which are rounded.

17 Rocks of the Wisconsin Driftless area S h or el in e CAMB RIAN Frac sands Deep Shallow Sea Level Frac sands were rounded when above sea level!

18 Blackhawk Rock, Kickapoo Valley Reserve Stratigraphy (courtesy Chuck Hatfield) Ordovician Oneota Dolomite (lower Prairie du Chien Group Jordan AQUIFER AND FRAC SAND St. Lawrence Lone Rock Wonewoc Upper Cambrian, mainly sandstones AQUIFER AND FRAC SAND

19 Kickapoo Valley geology Formations and their ages in millions of years ORDOVICIAN SYSTEM Platteville Limestone, St. Peter Sandstone, oddard Westby La Farge Cazenovia R. Springs Baraboo Wisconsin R PdCD SPS Prairie du Chien Dolomite, Upper Cambrian sandstones (aquifers) PreCambrian basement rocks, 3-1 billion years old CAMBRIAN: Jordan Formation and older sandstones, 488+

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21 Sand grains were rounded when they were above sea level and blown about by the wind, forming sand dunes. Each sand grain underwent this process countless times.

22 Sand grains moving in water are cushioned from each other when they collide. Windborne sand grains can travel much faster, and can collide unimpeded, thereby rounding each other.

23 Which kind of sand makes the best aquifer? Poorly sorted, angular Well sorted, angular Poorly sorted, rounded The more pore space between grains to hold water, the better. Small grains occupy pores. Angles and edges occupy pores. Pore space is maximized between rounded grains of the same size. Well sorted and rounded

24 Nature expended huge amounts of time and energy to make well rounded, well sorted quartz sand grains. The most important benefit to humanity: Such deposits are our best aquifers, sources of renewable groundwater. But the same properties also make the sands the best and most abundant proppants for fracking.

25 Frac sand mining A single mine uses hundreds of thousands of gallons of water a day. Two near Calico Rock, Arkansas use 678,000 gallons/day. Issues: Surface water and/or groundwater depletion and contamination.

26 The Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources are proponents and apologists for frac-sand mining. Historically, WDNR allows lobbyists for any industry to write the regulations for that industry. (Judging from MN DNR may not be any better) Spoiler Alert: Any of the following slides and slide portions with blue background come from this presentation.

27 Not really that many Natural gas does burn more cleanly than oil or coal, but its extraction is not clean, and its combustion does create CO2.

28 Report: Little impact on Wisconsin from frac sand mining jobs Posted on May 16, 2013 By Kate Prengaman, Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism Frac sand mining s impact on job creation in Wisconsin s sandy areas will be minimal, and communities must account for its potential economic drawbacks, according to a new report. Economic impact studies almost always quantify only what are labeled benefits: additional jobs, payrolls, and tax revenues to governments, says the report, released Wednesday by Power Consulting, Inc, a Montanabased consulting firm that specializes in natural resources analysis. Citing examples like an economic impact report from Wood County last year, the report says costs associated with frac-sand production are rarely discussed in these studies. The report was commissioned by the Wisconsin Farmers Union, a family farming advocacy group; Wisconsin Towns Association, a nonpartisan association representing town and village governments; and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, a Minnesota-based sustainable food, farm and trade research and advocacy organization.

29 [EOG: ENRON Oil and Gas] About jobs, Ron Koshoshek, Chair of the Plan Commission for the town of Howard in Chippewa County: In Howard, the EOG mine has not employed even one town citizen to the best of our knowledge. Kraemer Mining from Minnesota does the actual mining operation and their employees are from out-of-state. It is hard to get real data on any of the local impacts regarding job opportunities. Job fairs have been largely publicity stunts.

30 In the next 6 months there will be 5000 acres of mining operations permitted or in the process of being permitted in Cooks Valley and Auburn townships. There are a few local towns people in those townships hired to truck for these companies, but we are already hearing complaints about being underpaid, of having hours promised cut way back because of a variety of problems, and of local sand and gravel operators being fired because of incompetence or general failure to meet expectations with other miners being brought in from outside areas to replace them. I am reminded of the Pizza companies scam of hiring young men provided they use their own cars to deliver. The job was over as soon as the car broke down and they did not save enough to replace the car (because not paid enough to do that)...

31 About natural gas as a clean fuel National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and U. of Colorado: Denver-Julesburg Basin natural-gas producers lose 4% of their gas to the atmosphere plus losses from wellhead to stove. R. W. Howarth et al. of Cornell U: 3.6% - 7.9% is vented and leaked over the lifetime of a well, % more than conventional gas production. Methane is a 25X more efficient a greenhouse gas than CO2. That much leakage could effectively offset the environmental edge claimed for natural gas over other fossil fuels.

32 Fracking enlarges fractures and makes new ones. Gravity Gravity Pressure Pressure Sh r ea fra ctu re Pressure Pressure Hydraulic fracturing pressure Fractures can leak gas up to the surface

33 POTENTIAL LEAKS FROM HIGH PRESSURE HYDROFRACKING OF SHALE By James L. Chip Northrup, September 8, 2010, Oswego

34 D.R. Caulton et al., 2014,Toward a better understanding and quantification of methane emissions from shale gas development. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (early edition, 12 March) We identified a significant regional flux of methane over a large area of shale gas wells in southwestern Pennsylvania in the Marcellus formation and further identified several pads with high methane emissions. These shale gas pads were identified as in the drilling process, a preproduction stage not previously associated with high methane emissions... Large emissions averaging 34 g CH4/s per well were observed from seven well pads determined to be in the drilling phase, 2 to 3 orders of magnitude greater than US Environmental Protection Agency estimates for this operational phase. The emissions from these well pads, representing 1% of the total number of wells, account for 4 30% of the observed regional flux...

35 100 to 1,000 times more than previously estimated by EPA! Flying about seven well pads in a plane equipped to measure greenhouse gas emissions, researchers found that, on average, the sites emitted 34 grams of methane per second. The EPA s estimate: between 0.04 and 0.30 grams of methane per second. Experts had thought that methane was more likely to be released during subsequent phases of production, including hydraulic fracturing, well completion or transport through pipelines.

36 Different kind of mining! Frack-sand mining is and will be much greater in magnitude, and the mining frenzy unavoidably will relax environmental protection, which are inadequate to begin with.

37 Downplayed! Principal contaminants of concern: Flocculants, mentioned only in passing by WGNHS. Flocculants: chemical additives used to clarify the water from mineral washing processes, speeding up the thickening of sludge and encouraging its compacting. Flocculants may include polyacrylamide, acrylamide, aluminum sulfate, iron sulfate, organic coagulants (polyamines and polydadmacs), polyacrylate dispersants, antifoams and defoamers.

38 Dispersion of very fine sediment Flocculated dispersion Flocculation, using a flocculant Large sediment grains settle more quickly than fine ones. Floccule : a clump of fine sediment grains that settles quickly, like a single large grain.

39 Magnified floccules

40 Flocculant polymer, greatly magnified, attracts sediment particles with electrostatic charge Floccule POLYMER: A complex chemical structure, made of many linked simpler structures called monomers

41 Acrylamide is a carcinogenic neurotoxin. (monomer) Polyacrylamide (polymer) million acrylamide units comprise one strand of linear polyacrylamide. Small amounts of acrylamide always accompany polyacrylamides. Question 1: Is this because of spontaneous breakdown? Question 2: Can polyacrylamide degenerate into acrylamide in soils, streams and groundwater?

42 In courts of law, defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. But in environmental protection, a suspect substance MUST be presumed guilty until proved otherwise. The stakes are far too great to do otherwise. Commercial polyacrylamide hydrogels are mixed in garden soils to hold and slowly release water a dangerous practice!

43 The Myth of Polyacrylamide Hydrogels Linda Chalker-Scott, Ph.D., Extension Horticulturist and Associate Professor, Puyallup Research and Extension Center, Washington State University Hydrogels degrade after 2-5 years... Exposure to fertilizer salts will increase the degradation rate of hydrogels... When hydrogels degrade, one of the byproducts is acrylamide, a deadly neurotoxin and potential carcinogen. Acrylamide can be absorbed through the skin or by inhaling; people who have a likely risk of exposure to this compound absolutely require safety clothing and dust masks... For more information: Dr. Chalker-Scott s web page at

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45 Ken Stark s cartoon says it all

46 IA, MN Warning: The worst stuff is too fine to see or draw in a cartoon, and travels farthest on the wind

47 WDNR 30 August 2011 Silica Study Report (Their wording, my own emphasis in red) Industrial sources of crystalline silica include... mining and rock crushing operations. Crystalline forms of silica (such as quartz) meet the definition of a known carcinogenic hazardous air pollutant... No federal air quality standards for silica currently exist. Federal standards for particulate matter (PM), a component of which is silica, are in effect for PM 10 and PM2.5. The size of crystalline silica particles of most concern are those that are smaller than four microns (millionths of a meter), also called particulate matter 4 (PM4). There are no generally accepted methods for monitoring PM4 in ambient air.

48 Controls for crystalline silica are the same controls typically used for particulate matter (PM). The extent of reduction from existing particulate matter (PM) controls is not currently known and will vary from source to source. The types and costs for these controls need to be evaluated on a facility-by-facility basis.... where people live near a source of crystalline silica, data from other air pollution control agencies shows that silica ambient air concentrations could be above a level of concern.. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) has extensive experience applying PM controls to many types of air pollution sources. For example, many permits for industrial sources require dust management plans and other controls to reduce PM emissions, which also help minimize crystalline silica emissions...

49 Currently, WDNR has no crystalline silica monitoring data. Additional financial and staff resources would be needed to conduct crystalline silica monitoring. Monitoring to specifically analyze for crystalline silica is difficult, there are no federal standards and there is no standard reference method for monitoring crystalline silica in ambient air very little conclusive information exists regarding sources, controls or levels of silica present in ambient air. This... means it is not currently possible to determine conclusively whether or to what extent the quantity, duration or types of silica emissions in the state may be a public health concern. It would take significant additional efforts to fill in these data gaps. That said, Wisconsin has regulated PM for 40 years. The controls for PM are the same controls for crystalline silica. This means that for those crystalline silica sources where PM is controlled, crystalline silica emissions are also reduced. Not good enough!

50 WDNR 30 August 2011 Silica Study Report, my summary Fine crystalline silica particles are carcinogenic. No federal air quality standards control it. Most dangerous particles are finer than four microns. [Breathable, penetrate most deeply into lung tissue, carcinogenic, too fine to be visible, travel farthest in the wind, hardest to measure] No generally accepted ways to monitor it in ambient air. The types and costs for controls need to be evaluated on a facility-by-facility basis. Currently, WDNR has no crystalline silica monitoring data mainly because it has no guidelines and no resources. If you live near an industrial source, the silica in the air you breathe should worry you. WDNR wrongly dismisses it as just another component in a grab bag of all airborne particulate matter.

51 The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health... of the Center for Disease Control recently collected... air samples at 11 different hydraulic fracturing sites in... AR, CO, ND, PA and TX.... exposures to respirable crystalline silica consistently exceeded... the OSHA Permissible Exposure Limit, NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit, and the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienist s Threshold Limit Value... 47% of the 116 samples collected exceeded the calculated OSHA limits; 79% exceeded the NIOSH and ACGIH limits of the 116 (31%) samples exceeded the NIOSH limit by a factor of 10 or more. The significance of these findings is that even if workers are properly using half-mask air-purifying respirators, they would not be sufficiently protected because half-mask air-purifying respirators have a maximum use concentration of 10 times the occupational health exposure limit.

52 Eldon A. Smith*, Susan L. Prues*, and Frederick W. Oehme, 1997, Environmental Degradation of Polyacrylamides II. Effects of Environmental (Outdoor) Exposure. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety v.37, n. 1: The environmental fate of a polyacrylamide thickening agent... was examined under various environmental situations: formulation in surface water and ground water, volatility, and soil mobility......polyacrylamide can degrade to acrylamide under environmental conditions... Acrylamide and ammonium concentrations increased during the study in all formulations, except when solutions evaporated to dryness... *GEO-CENTERS, Inc., at Naval Medical Research Institute Detachment (Toxicology), WrightPatterson AFB, Ohio Comparative Toxicology Laboratories, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University.

53 WDNR Air Monitoring Network

54 Particulate and silica health risk research being conducted by Dr. Crispin Pierce and students in the Environmental Public Health Program at the UW-Eau Claire College of Nursing and Health Sciences Donations to support this research can be made online at In the gift designation area write: Applied Environmental Health Research Fund. What are PM10, PM4 and PM2.5? PM = Particulate Matter (airborne) 10, 4 and 2.5 refer to sizes in microns, or millionths of a meter. Smallest object visible to naked human eye: about 100 microns.

55 INITIAL RESULTS ( measured levels of PM2.5-4 microns increased from EOG plant construction through full operation; PM10 Levels during operation were higher than the DNR Model-predicted maximum concentration and the EOG 24-hour measured levels; EOG PM10 measurements are unreliable estimates of PM2.5; Measured levels of PM2.5 at EOG, Superior Silica Sands (Auburn), and Fairmount Mine (Menomonie) were micrograms/m3 higher than concurrent DNR regional levels.

56 A 2012 Wisconsin State Supreme Court decision ruled that towns could regulate sand mining operations with their zoning ordinances and their general police powers. To limit the impact of this ruling, the last WI Senate session s Bill 349, and its updated version (Senate Bill 63) would have barred local governments from imposing rules on sand mine operations. The bill was supported by the Wisconsin Industrial Sand Association and other trade groups.

57 But strenuous opposition by the Wisconsin Towns Association, other local officials and environmentalists prevented passage of the bill this session. IT WILL BE BACK...

58 Anticipating future attacks on its rights to protect its environment and the health and well-being of its citizens, the Viroqua Township board is considering a draft Non- Metallic Mining Ordinance. We encourage all other townships to develop and adapt similar ordinances. Copies of the proposed Viroqua Township Non-Metallic Mining Ordinance are available on request.

59 Cooper Engineering line drawing of Superior Silica Sands dry frac sand plant and railyard, Barron County WI

60 One last thought: Is it morally OK for us to manufacture frac sands for use in states that are blessed with tight gas shales?

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