Fracking’s Contribution to Water Contamination

In December 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency sparked great controversy as it declared that hydraulic fracturing could be the root cause of underground water pollution in central Wyoming. Hydraulic fracturing is the process of extracting natural gas or oil from the ground by means of injecting chemicals at high pressure into the fractures of rocks below earth’s surface (“Dictionary.com”). Officials claim that the pollution near Pavillion, Wyoming “had most likely seeped up from gas wells and contained at least 10 compounds known to be used in frack fluids” (Lustgarten, and Kusnetz 3).

At the time, EnCana did not express any concern and accused the EPA of false findings. EnCana is the gas company that owns the wells near Pavillion, and a spokesman for the company stated that, “Nothing EPA presented suggests anything has changed since August of last year – the science remains inconclusive in terms of data, impact, and source” (Lustgarten, and Kusnetz 10). This is ridiculous considering the chemicals found are the same as those used in fracking. Coinciding with the spokesman’s statement, Senator James Inhofe (R-Okla.) told a Senate panel that he “found the agency’s report on the Pavillion-area contamination ‘offensive’” (Lustgarten, and Kusnetz 11). Inhofe continued to oppose the EPA by labeling the agency as biased.

Many of the local Pavillion residents complained that their water turned brown after the gas wells had been fracked; this problem startein the mid-1990s and has gotten increasingly worse throughout the years (Lustgarten, and Kusnetz 12). An on-going issue of this magnitude cannot continue and cannot be declared “inconclusive” or “offensive.” The EPA began taking water samples in early 2008. Traces of hydrocarbons and other chemicals that are used in fracking had been found within the resident’s water wells (Lustgarten, and Kusnetz 13). In 2010, the EPA and federal health officials warned residents to avoid consumption of the water and to ventilate homes during baths as the methane in the water could cause explosions (Lustgarten, and Kusnetz 13). Residents could no longer safely bathe without fear of the chemicals in the water. It has been disrupting their lives since the issue began in the 1990s.

Further investigation by the EPA led to findings of high levels of carcinogenic chemicals such as benzene; a well-known chemical that is used in fracking, 2 Butoxyethanol, was also found in the water (Lustgarten, and Kusnetz 14). However, despite the evidence, EnCana continued to deny their involvement in any of the pollution. The company would not reveal the chemicals that had been used to frack the wells. The finding of 2-BE was considered “inconsistent in detection,” according to Doug Hock, the EnCana spokesman (Lustgarten, and Kusnetz 23). Despite all the findings, hopefully Hock and the Senator will realize the harm they are doing not only to the land, but to the innocent residents of Pavillion.

 

"Hydraulic Fracturing." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, LLC., 2012. Web. 28 Sep 2012. <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/hydraulic fracturing>.

Lustgarten, Abrahm, and Nicholas Kusnetz. "EPA: Natural Gas Fracking Linked to Water Contamination." Scientific American. 09 Dec 2011: n. page. Web. 28 Sep. 2012. <http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fracking-linked-water-contamination-federal-agency>.