5 Million Gallons of Water per Well?

[Marina Schwarz + 1,576]

"A new study highlights how the five million gallons of freshwater used to fracture just one gas well in the U.S.—or more than enough to fill seven Olympic-size swimming pools—has depleted water levels in up to 51 percent of streams in Arkansas."

here's a new direction for efficiency improvements...

[Rodent + 1,424]

The conspiracy theorist in me wonders if Arkansas really exists at all. It has been my long-held belief, stemming from childhood, that some of those middle states in the US aren't actually there. I've never met anyone from Arkansas, or Iowa, or Missouri. In fact, I've never met anyone who's even been there. CIA black sites? 

 

 

[Rodent + 1,424]

but if it does exist, and the streams are 51% depleted, that seems... bad. Don't they recycle the water that they use to frack? 

[TraderTate + 186]

Some do recycle, but this, I understand, is still a nascent process. The water usages is a massive problem for everyone, even the frackers because it's a huge cost issue. 

[Marina Schwarz + 1,576]

Recycling is probably costly.

[Rodent + 1,424]

 

7 hours ago, Marina Schwarz said:

Recycling is probably costly.

So then, what happens to the water, ultimately? I mean, it's not like it disappears?

[Carlsbad + 19]

so a majority of the water (maybe around 60%) injected into a well discharges as wasterwater, that either has to be stored somewhere, taken somewhere else to be treated or recycled. 

[Marina Schwarz + 1,576]

@Rodent, they put it into the ground, which is what has been found to be linked to quakes. makes sense really, you can't dumb millions of gallons of water into the ground (underground reservoirs) and expect the earth's crust to ignore it.