[quote]thethirdruffian wrote:
[quote]Fletch1986 wrote:
The produced water that sometimes has radioactive material and arsenic among other toxic heavy metals that sometimes has higher salinity by an order of magnitude than sea water from great depths? I agree, that’s an additional hazard.
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Just so you know produced water is water that is produced along with oil. You inject it back into the formation (or a like formation) to keep pressures up, albeit at a distance from the wellbore itself to prevent watering out of your well.
[quote]
And just so we’re all clear on this, we are all referring to high pressure, high volume hydrolytic fracturing, as opposed to the kind of fracking that’s been going on for 100 years? Just getting that out there before someone comes in and tells us about how fracking has been going on forever because there is a nugget of truth there but it’s a very small nugget. [/quote]
Actually, it is the same. All that happens now is a bridge plug or packer or whatnot is put in (really two, one at the top and bottom of the target zone) and the pressure is concentrated in the the formation in question, instead of the entire length of the tubing.
You unscrew (or drill through depending on how you are doing it) the sets and move up the pipe, specific target by specific target.
Not only is less total pressure needed (because it is focused), but because you are not pressuring the upper portions of the wellbore (where you can have fresh water behind pipe), it is far less likely to cause a rupture.
In short, the sheer stupidity of the arguments is shocking.
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As am aside, I got a kick out of Matt Damon complaining about “Burning Creek” burning due to gas coming to the surface.
Burning Creek has had that name for a couple hundred years.
Gee, I wonder how it got its name? Could it be normally-occurring natural gas seepage that was spotted and why the original drillers picked that spot to drill?
No! Next thing people will tell me that tar sands, balls, and seepages were noted in Genensis in areas of the now-middle east where there is oil production. Oh wait.[/quote]
My biggest concerns about the fracking fluids getting into ground water is improperly laid well casings and improperly laid liners for containment ponds. I really don’t think it’ll seep from into the groundwater from the depths it’s being blasted into. I also don’t buy into the earthquakes deal. There’s also the equipment used to move and pump the fracking fluid into the well which can have leaks.
In the perfect world of Perfectania where everything is installed perfectly and no leaks occur and human error never happens, I would think fracking is pretty damned safe. But that isn’t always so.
I’ve also talked to a couple of workers who directly deal with the fracking fluids and heard about the PPE they have to wear and how they can still smell that stuff through their respirators. I know this isn’t scientific or anything… but all the housecleaning supplies around my house don’t require that kind of equipment and there sure isn’t anywhere near that level of smell from them.
But anyway, as far as leaks and that thing, is your only argument that the fracking fluids are safe despite most people not even knowing what all them are because ‘proprietary blends’ don’t have to be disclosed?
And it’s good to be chatting to someone who has experience and knowledge about this stuff whereas my knowledge is purely academic. Genuinely, thanks.