What the FRACK!

Fracking has been a controversial issue that has been in the news recently, but do you know what fracking really is?  Do you know why there has been such an uproar?

Fracking is the process of extracting natural gas from shale rock layers deep within the earth. Fracking or hydraulic fracturing, is a new development which allows gas companies to extract gas from previously unreachable places. Recent advancements in drilling technology has led to new man-made hydraulic fractures in the shale that was once unreachable.

How  does fracking work?.

 The first part of the operation is to drill several hundred meters into the earth, from there the drill is turned horizontally to make a hole in the gas bearing layer of rock. The aim is to reach the tiny fissures in the shale rock (a type of sedimentary rock), these fissures are very small: some are less than a millimetre wide. Inside these minute fissures , small gas molecules are trapped inside. Next fracking fluid (slick water)  is pumped in at high pressure using high performance pumps; Slick water is water with a certain amount  of sand, on average the slick water contains around 8 million litres of water, several thousand tons of sand and around 200,000 litres of chemicals. This mixture, slick water, forces the cracks in the rock to widen, the added sand keeps the fissures open. The chemicals in the slick water, among other things, condense the water, kill of bacteria and dissolve minerals. With the rock now broken up, the gas is released and carried all the way back to the surface. The slick water, as a rule, is pumped back into the deep underground layers and sealed there.

 Why is fracking such a controversial issue?

There are many risks associated with fracking. A primary risk is the contamination of drinking water sources. Fracking not only uses a considerable amount of freshwater but because of the chemicals used it is highly toxic and contaminated. The contamination is so severe, The water cannot be cleaned even in a treatment plant. Even though the threat of contamination could be managed, in the USA water sources have already been contaminated due to negligence. Furthermore on-one knows how the enclosed water will behave because there haven't been any long term studies of the subject. Moreover the chemicals used in fracking range from the extremely toxic to the carcinogenic, such as benzol or formic acid. The fracking companies do not say much about the chemicals used but it is known that there are around 700 different chemical agents used in the process. Another risk is the release of green house gases, the natural gases recovered from fracking is mostly methane. Methane is 25x more potent as a green house gas than carbon dioxide, around 3% of this gas is lost to the atmosphere during extraction. This means that fracking has the potential to be a big factor in global warming. Another risk is earthquakes. Injecting fluids underground increases pressure on seismic faults and make them more likely to slip, but the tremors produced by fracking are mostly so small that it is barely noticeable. The fracking industry got off to a bad start in Britain  when a operation site in Lancashire registered two quakes, measuring magnitude 2.3 and 1.5 on the Richter scale. That was not enough to damage buildings but it scared people and caused major uproar from opponents.

Benefits of fracking?

Aside from all the negatives about fracking, are there any benefits?

Fracking provides energy, energy is a fundamental service needed for daily life. The is that reality is that all forms of energy production have environmental consequences, therefore the real question is, do the benefits outweigh the negatives? Firstly, shale gas provides a new opportunity to meet rising global energy requirements, shale gas has the potential to drop rising energy costs. This will allow those who are not economically stable to be able to access energy that can be used to heat houses or run cars. Secondly the shale gas industry is creating many jobs. In the UK alone, Cuadrilla Resources in Bowland Shale, Lancashire, would create 5,600 jobs. This could help to tackle unemployment and give the economy a much needed boost. Thirdly, The shale gas industry will be a source of tax revenue for government. In the UK, the government has said that local authorities should receive a large portion of business tax raised from shale gas projects. Therefore generating money for the local communities that allow fracking sites. Cuadrilla, estimates that the UK government would be due between 5 and 6 billion pounds in tax alone during the 30-year lifespan of the project.

Conclusion:

I personally don't agree with fracking; Before, the immanent fact that we were going to run out of oil and gas forced the government to invest in cleaner and alternative sources of energy. Now that another way of extracting that energy has been found, the government will not invest in alternative energy sources, instead they will pool their money in to this operation. The benefits of hydraulic fracturing do not in any way out weigh the negatives. The extra cash that is generated through this process is nothing compared to the possible dangers to our earth. However I know that "money makes the world go round", but soon this shale gas will also run out and hopefully before the effects of global warming become critical, the world will be  using clean energy.  

update: check out this website to find out how the negatives of fracking can be fixed.http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-05/future-energy-oil-and-gas?dom=tw&src=SOC
   

As always, Seemal