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New Rules and Errors Attribute to Increase of Marcellus Shale Waste
The first half of 2011 has seen a vast increase is fluid and solid waste produced by Marcellus Shale natural gas drillers in Pennsylvania. Though partially explained by changes in reporting requirements and mistakes in previous data accounts, the Marcellus wells in Pennsylvania have produced more than 34 million barrels of sale and metal laden wastewater. This amount represented an increase of more than eight times the amount produced in the previous six months.
Chesapeake Energy attributes the increases waste production to changes in state reporting requirements and increases in production from its gas drilling wells. A major change in reporting requirements requires drilling companies to report not only the waste they dispose of, but also all of the wastewater they reuse or recycle.
About 86 percent of the waste produced in the first half of 2011 was reused or recycled. A portion of this waste was taken to treatment plants that are no longer used due to a request by the DEP Secretary, Michael Krancer, to stop using the plants. Another portion was injected into deep disposal wells mostly in Ohio.
The significant increase in reported waste production is also attributed to an error in reporting of waste data. Instead of reporting the figure it tons, EOG Resources, Inc. reported it in pounds. The company is in the process of submitting a revised report to correct for the error.
