The fracking concern with water quality
It is reported that UOGD has increased salt concentrations in surface waters across the United States, and the findings have broad implications for research and policy going forward.
Abstract
Tapping into oil and gas reserves comes at the expense of contaminating water Unconventional oil and gas development (UOGD) has revolutionized resource extraction over the past two and a half decades. Although these methods to recover oil and gas began in the 1980s, only recently have technological innovations in horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (HF) made it financially feasible to extract resources from difficult-to-access rock formations with low permeability (1). These innovations have massively increased the availability of oil and gas resources for consumption, yielding energy cost savings, employment, and income (2). One estimate finds per household benefits to be about 4.9% of income annually (3). Many have cautioned that human and ecological health may be damaged by the negative environmental impacts that come with these benefits. On page 896 of this issue, Bonetti et al. (4) report that UOGD has increased salt concentrations in surface waters across the United States. The findings have broad implications for research and policy going forward.