If you’ve been keeping up with oil and gas news (and if you haven’t that’s okay because you are clearly interested in reading this article), you’ll know that natural gas extraction has recently been a subject of heated debate.
Why is this a big issue? Well, natural gas presents a promising alternative to our conventional energy resources. Natural gas can be used to heat or cool your home, generate electricity, and even fuel your vehicle—perhaps not the vehicle you have (or wish you had) at this moment whose engine is most probably suited for gasoline, but you get the idea. In fact, natural gas burns far cleaner than coal (a typical source of electricity) and oil, roughly 45% and 30% fewer carbon dioxide emissions respectively (Source: naturalgas.org). So clearly, natural gas is an environmentally friendly alternative source of energy.
But surely the environment is not the only reason why we are so suddenly interested in natural gas…You guessed it: China needs natural gas. Additionally, Canada has also been a major supplier of natural gas to the United States.
Joking aside, natural gas is an increasing valuable commodity and also represents an opportunity for job creation and economic growth throughout the West (British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan) as well as in New Brunswick and other parts of the marimitimes. Though all this is all well and good, tapping this new resource is quite the challenge.
Like oil, natural gas is a fossil fuel, formed from decayed plant and animal remains that underwent high temperature and pressure for millions of years. Chemically speaking, natural gas consists primarily of methane, though trace amounts of other alkanes, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and nitrogen may also be present in varying amounts. Natural gas is typically found in rock formations (shale is one example), which is part of what makes it such a difficult resource to tap into.
The natural gas extraction process is called hydraulic fracturing, (also known as fracking). First, a well is drilled into the shale formation, hundreds or even thousands of meters down such that there is sufficient natural gas to justify the extraction. Fracking fluid, a mixture consisting mostly of water and sand is pumped through the well, increasing the pressure in the surrounding rock, thereby causing it to fracture. Following the end of the pumping stage, sand grains get into these cracks, keeping them open and allowing the natural gas to escape into the well. The natural gas then travels up the well and is recovered at the surface.
Unfortunately, these shale formations contain a significant portion of groundwater. The natural gas is located several hundred meters below the groundwater. So if the part of the well in the groundwater region is just a little leaky, the groundwater (aka drinking water) can be severely contaminated. This is the major issue with fracking.
Industry is adamant that the cement casing surrounding the well near in the groundwater region and for several hundred meters below is sufficient to ensure the prevention of leaks. However, a recent report on the environmental impacts of shale gas extraction in Canada reveals that improperly formed well casings and high pressure are in a major source of leaks. Furthermore, the report found that wells had not been monitored sufficiently well to properly assess the risk of leakage, and the potential impacts on the surrounding geology, which will vary. Human health risks associated with the process are also to be assessed.
It should be noted that there are regulations in place that pertain specifically to natural gas extraction. The major drilling provinces, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick, each claim that their regulations are up to snuff and industry is confident that the regulations are stringent enough to deal with the risks associated with natural gas extraction. Scientists are skeptical of these regulations, claiming that the regulatory regime in these provinces is skewed to support the economic development of natural gas extraction.
Whatever the case may be, the reality is we just do not know enough about the risks and consequences associated with groundwater contamination from fracking to justify its regular use. Just because we don’t know specifically what those risks and consequences may be doesn’t mean we should go ahead and do it anyway (experimental determination anyone?). That being said, the environmental and economic benefits associated with natural gas are not to be overlooked. If we are serious about natural gas, a commitment needs to be made to understand and assess these risks. Further research should be done to improve extraction technology so as to protect the groundwater from contamination. Local residents need to be made aware of potential contamination issues. The list goes on. At the end of the day, it needs to be decided whether or not natural gas is an investment worth making.
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