Unconventional Resources: New Facilities Find Solutions to Limited Water Sources

Abstract

It is common knowledge that hydraulic fracturing operations require a lot of water, and as they have become a more vital element of the oil and gas industry, sourcing this water has proven to be a challenge for companies operating in tough terrain. Drought plagues much of the United States, a country with significant hydraulic fracturing activity, and operators have to take hydrology concerns into consideration when constructing facilities in these environments. In most cases, the solution means recycling produced and flowback water and diminishing, or eliminating altogether, the need for fresh water. Depending on the region and its specific challenges, operators are finding unique ways to address the water issue. In the past couple of years, new facilities have been built or repurposed with new technologies that may affect how companies work in water-stressed shale plays in the future. Where are these new facilities with these new technologies, and how will they help operators solve the problem of finding water to use in an expanding sector of the industry? Hydrology The competition for water from users in fracturing and other users is high. According to Ceres, a nonprofit organization that focuses on water scarcity, 41% of wells in the US are in regions with extreme water stress, or areas where more than 80% of available water is being drawn by municipal, agricultural, and industrial users. Although hydraulic fracturing usually accounts for less than 2% of a state’s overall water usage, the figure can be much higher in some locations (Freyman and Salmon 2013).