Marcellu Shale

Marcellus Shale

What is the Marcellus Shale you ask? What are some advantages and disadvantages of this operation? The Marcellus Shale is a geological formation formed by the accumulation of sediment into a sea. Over time the sediment compresses to produce an organic-rich black shale. Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock. Drilling into formations like the Marcellus Shale has been around since the Civil War. The process involves a key element called hydraulic fracturing, which involves injecting water and sand into a formation to help natural gas flow up a well. But we must be wary about possible chemicals that can disperse during and after this operation. Fracturing can lead to bromide in water and other compounds that are highly toxic. The Environmental Protection Agency has started a study of these chemicals that can be released, but isn't going to be completed until the fourth quarter of next year. Some may ask why don't we wait until the results of the study are released. On the bright side of hydraulic fracturing is that without fracturing there would be little or no on-shore oil or gas operations. Hydraulic fracturing has also made oil and gas operations in North America more effective.

The biggest problem here is where are they going to get the needed three to five million gallons of water? Water is regularly controlled, and may possess a challenge if recycled water isn't used. That is where flow-back water comes into play. Flow-back water is the water that is pumped up from the formation. It is recycled and used to continue the fracturing or is transported to permitted treatment facilities. We also need to worry about health issues. Its statistically proven that disease occurrence in communities will increase after Marcellus Shale drilling. Pollution will rise to higher levels and possibly exceed the EPA's ozone standard. In order to lower the pollution the EPA raised their standards by requiring companies to use the best anti-pollution technology available. Something else that should be looked at is the number of environmental violations that drilling companies have received. Some companies have twice as many violations than drilling sites do.

Another advantage of the Marcellus Shale operation is economical opportunity in Pennsylvania. This will allow Pennsylvania to continue to look into the improvement of drilling and technology for future drilling operations. This in turn will provide more jobs for more people. The gas produced from shale is the cleanest burning fossil fuel and will be used over the next few decades. Marcellus Shale drilling will continue to be one of the biggest topics talked about in Pennsylvania for many reasons. For now the outcome is yet to be determined.