Long Term Cumulative Community Impact of the Massive Industrialization of High Volume Horizontal Hydrofracture Shale Gas Drilling
1. Understanding the technology of HVHHS Gas Drilling (& how it differs from previous petroleum extraction):
a. Professor Anthony Ingraffea
· Drill here, Drill Now Screws the Grandkids. http://un-naturalgas.org/weblog/2010/04/tony-ingraffea-drill-here-drill-now-screws-the-grandkids-three-part-video-presentation/ April 17, 2010. Three parts (each about 25 min.)
· Disposal Wells: A Solution for Marcellus Waste? http://shaleshockmedia.org/2010/05/29/disposal-wells-a-solution-for-marcellus-waste/ May 3, 2010, Ithaca, NY. (Total length: 123 min) Introduction: (approx. 4 min.); Bill Kappel, USGS, Water Resources Division: (approx. 11 min.); Rachel Treichler, Attorney from Hammondsport (approx. 12 min.); Dr. Tony Ingraffea, Cornell University Engineering Dept. (approx. 16 min.); Q & A: Part I: (approx. 31 min.) /Q & A: Part II: (approx. 24 min.) / Q & A: Part III: (approx. 25 min.)
· Siegel & Ingraffea Debate on Hydrofracking. http://shaleshockmedia.org/2011/04/11/professors-siegel-and-ingraffea-debate-on-hydrofracking/ February 20, 2011. SUNY Cortland, NY. Prof. Anthony Ingraffea, engineer fracture expert, Prof. Donald Siegel hydrogeologist, Syracuse University, Intro. (9 min) / Dr. Siegel: (15 min) / Dr. Ingraffea: (15 min) / Q &A Part I : (40 min) / Q & A Part II (40 min)
· http://shaleshockmedia.org/2011/01/30/3-tony-ingraffea-sautnersjosh-fox-cumulative-environmental-effects-of-gas-drilling/ Ingraffea’s response to Terry Engelder’s pro-drilling statement in a debate. (about 30 min.) ©
b. James Northrup:
· http://vimeo.com/14472351 (4:45 min.) Brief introduction to high-volume slick- water horizontal hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) gas drilling method and
· http://my.brainshark.com/Prohibit-Fracking-In-Your-Town-872341386 (8 mins, 16 slides) Apr 01, 2011
· http://my.brainshark.com/Prohibit-Fracking-Through-Zoning-926534928 (5 mins., 31 slides) Apr 11, 2011
c. Dr. J. Stephen Cleghorn: "The Case for a Moratorium on Drilling the Marcellus Shale in PA"
http://go.to/stopmarcellus : "...An organic farmer in western Pennsylvania assembles the case for a moratorium on unconventional drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale.” Well-documented, clearly stated description of the entire process & excellent response to all the claims made by industry (1 hour)
2. Learning about risks from where drilling has been done:
a. Bradford County PA: http://www.bradfordcountypa.org/Natural-Gas.asp?specifTab=2 active map showing the progression of gas wells drilled between 2009-2011 in Bradford County.
b. Learning from Arkansas. http://www.arpanel.org/content/Arkansas%20in%20the%20Balance%20Exec%20Summary.pdf Arkansas in the Balance (Summary report by the Arkansas Public Policy Panel February 2011) “Concentrated Impacts. A well pad requires clearing 3 to 10 acres of land, though multiple wells can be drilled from a single pad. Roads and pipelines leading to every well require additional land to be cleared, often causing erosion on the steep slopes of the Ozarks. The impact of a single well on land, water, property and health may be small, but the cumulative impact of 7,000 wells in close proximity—and many more to come—will be huge if proper measures are not taken to mitigate these impacts.”
c. Risk Assessment cites data from gas and oil drilling in CO, WVa, NM, PA, NY, TX and WY. RiskAssessmentNaturalGasExtraction.pdf “Over the last decade, operators in the natural gas industry have developed highly sophisticated methods and materials for the exploration and production of methane from unconventional reservoirs. In spite of the technological advances made to date, these activities pose significant chemical and biological hazards to human health and ecosystem stability. If future impacts may be inferred from recent historical performance, then: Between two and four percent of shale gas well projects in New York will pollute local ground-water over the short term. Serious regulatory violation rates will exceed twelve percent.”
d. http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/5839/?mid=54 “HERE, THEN, are the environmental precepts violated by hydrofracking: 1) Environmental degradation of the commons should be factored into the price structure of the product (full-cost accounting), whose true carbon footprint—inclusive of all those diesel truck trips, blowouts, and methane leaks—requires calculation (life-cycle analysis). 2) Benefit of the doubt goes to public health, not the things that threaten it, especially in situations where catastrophic harm—aquifer contamination with carcinogens—is unremediable (the Precautionary Principle). 3) There is no away.”
a. Professor Anthony Ingraffea
· Drill here, Drill Now Screws the Grandkids. http://un-naturalgas.org/weblog/2010/04/tony-ingraffea-drill-here-drill-now-screws-the-grandkids-three-part-video-presentation/ April 17, 2010. Three parts (each about 25 min.)
· Disposal Wells: A Solution for Marcellus Waste? http://shaleshockmedia.org/2010/05/29/disposal-wells-a-solution-for-marcellus-waste/ May 3, 2010, Ithaca, NY. (Total length: 123 min) Introduction: (approx. 4 min.); Bill Kappel, USGS, Water Resources Division: (approx. 11 min.); Rachel Treichler, Attorney from Hammondsport (approx. 12 min.); Dr. Tony Ingraffea, Cornell University Engineering Dept. (approx. 16 min.); Q & A: Part I: (approx. 31 min.) /Q & A: Part II: (approx. 24 min.) / Q & A: Part III: (approx. 25 min.)
· Siegel & Ingraffea Debate on Hydrofracking. http://shaleshockmedia.org/2011/04/11/professors-siegel-and-ingraffea-debate-on-hydrofracking/ February 20, 2011. SUNY Cortland, NY. Prof. Anthony Ingraffea, engineer fracture expert, Prof. Donald Siegel hydrogeologist, Syracuse University, Intro. (9 min) / Dr. Siegel: (15 min) / Dr. Ingraffea: (15 min) / Q &A Part I : (40 min) / Q & A Part II (40 min)
· http://shaleshockmedia.org/2011/01/30/3-tony-ingraffea-sautnersjosh-fox-cumulative-environmental-effects-of-gas-drilling/ Ingraffea’s response to Terry Engelder’s pro-drilling statement in a debate. (about 30 min.) ©
b. James Northrup:
· http://vimeo.com/14472351 (4:45 min.) Brief introduction to high-volume slick- water horizontal hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) gas drilling method and
· http://my.brainshark.com/Prohibit-Fracking-In-Your-Town-872341386 (8 mins, 16 slides) Apr 01, 2011
· http://my.brainshark.com/Prohibit-Fracking-Through-Zoning-926534928 (5 mins., 31 slides) Apr 11, 2011
c. Dr. J. Stephen Cleghorn: "The Case for a Moratorium on Drilling the Marcellus Shale in PA"
http://go.to/stopmarcellus : "...An organic farmer in western Pennsylvania assembles the case for a moratorium on unconventional drilling for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale.” Well-documented, clearly stated description of the entire process & excellent response to all the claims made by industry (1 hour)
2. Learning about risks from where drilling has been done:
a. Bradford County PA: http://www.bradfordcountypa.org/Natural-Gas.asp?specifTab=2 active map showing the progression of gas wells drilled between 2009-2011 in Bradford County.
b. Learning from Arkansas. http://www.arpanel.org/content/Arkansas%20in%20the%20Balance%20Exec%20Summary.pdf Arkansas in the Balance (Summary report by the Arkansas Public Policy Panel February 2011) “Concentrated Impacts. A well pad requires clearing 3 to 10 acres of land, though multiple wells can be drilled from a single pad. Roads and pipelines leading to every well require additional land to be cleared, often causing erosion on the steep slopes of the Ozarks. The impact of a single well on land, water, property and health may be small, but the cumulative impact of 7,000 wells in close proximity—and many more to come—will be huge if proper measures are not taken to mitigate these impacts.”
c. Risk Assessment cites data from gas and oil drilling in CO, WVa, NM, PA, NY, TX and WY. RiskAssessmentNaturalGasExtraction.pdf “Over the last decade, operators in the natural gas industry have developed highly sophisticated methods and materials for the exploration and production of methane from unconventional reservoirs. In spite of the technological advances made to date, these activities pose significant chemical and biological hazards to human health and ecosystem stability. If future impacts may be inferred from recent historical performance, then: Between two and four percent of shale gas well projects in New York will pollute local ground-water over the short term. Serious regulatory violation rates will exceed twelve percent.”
d. http://www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/5839/?mid=54 “HERE, THEN, are the environmental precepts violated by hydrofracking: 1) Environmental degradation of the commons should be factored into the price structure of the product (full-cost accounting), whose true carbon footprint—inclusive of all those diesel truck trips, blowouts, and methane leaks—requires calculation (life-cycle analysis). 2) Benefit of the doubt goes to public health, not the things that threaten it, especially in situations where catastrophic harm—aquifer contamination with carcinogens—is unremediable (the Precautionary Principle). 3) There is no away.”
Citizens for a Healthy Community, New York, hosted a public forum on fracking on March 31, 2012. The link below will take you to a web site where you can watch the presentations given by an outstanding array of experts. These videos are important. We hope you'll take the time to watch and become better informed.
Watch Videos of Speakers from "Understanding the Risks of Oil & Gas Development"
Among these videos, we highly recommend James "Chip" Northrup's discussion of the certainty of methane migration, cement failure, etc. While there are some differences between NY and OH, those differences are not really so big. Both states have lots of surface water and shallow water wells----and cement is cement everywhere.
This is an incredibly informative - and at times entertaining - discussion. Note his frank comments about water testing. Don't miss the Q and A at the end, either!
March 31, 2012 CHC Forum - Chip Northrup
The last video is of Duke Cox, who moved his family from Rifle, Colorado, after learning that his family physician was leaving due to the contamination of the air and water from fracking. He describes how his community was successful in beating back the petroleum industry:
March 31, 2012 CHC Forum - Duke Cox
Watch Videos of Speakers from "Understanding the Risks of Oil & Gas Development"
Among these videos, we highly recommend James "Chip" Northrup's discussion of the certainty of methane migration, cement failure, etc. While there are some differences between NY and OH, those differences are not really so big. Both states have lots of surface water and shallow water wells----and cement is cement everywhere.
This is an incredibly informative - and at times entertaining - discussion. Note his frank comments about water testing. Don't miss the Q and A at the end, either!
March 31, 2012 CHC Forum - Chip Northrup
The last video is of Duke Cox, who moved his family from Rifle, Colorado, after learning that his family physician was leaving due to the contamination of the air and water from fracking. He describes how his community was successful in beating back the petroleum industry:
March 31, 2012 CHC Forum - Duke Cox
