Drought Impacts U.S. Oil & Gas Production
By: Mycah Glover
Updated: August 2, 2012
U.S. -- More than 60 percent of the nation is in some form of a drought, making it the largest natural disaster ever recorded in U.S. history. Along with West Texas, other drought-stricken areas include Colorado, North Dakota, Kansas and Pennsylvania, all of which are experiencing an all out oil and gas boom because of hydraulic fracturing. But that has many people concerned since that process requires millions of gallons of water.
Some companies operating in North Dakota's Bakken Shale and Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale say they're having a difficult time acquiring water.
In Kansas, where much of the oil and gas industry's water comes from wells owned by farmers, hydraulic fracturing jobs are being put on hold due to the expense. According to CNN Money, farmers used to sell an operator water for 35 cents a barrel. It's now going for 75 cents.
That's not necessarily the case in the Permian Basin. One company we spoke with said 85 percent of their operations have not been affected since much of the Basin has underground aquifers.
Another company we spoke with said it is having a bigger impact. They say they're spending more to pull from deeper reservoirs to avoid using precious fresh water. They also say those fresh water aquifers are starting to dry up due to the growing amount of regional drilling activity.
But long-term solutions could be coming. There are some companies offering water recycling services, which can be expensive. We'll take an in-depth look at that process later this month.
If water shortages are hurting your operations, we'd love to hear from you on our Facebook page, KMID BIG 2.
You can also follow Mycah Glover on Facebook and Twitter.
Some companies operating in North Dakota's Bakken Shale and Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale say they're having a difficult time acquiring water.
In Kansas, where much of the oil and gas industry's water comes from wells owned by farmers, hydraulic fracturing jobs are being put on hold due to the expense. According to CNN Money, farmers used to sell an operator water for 35 cents a barrel. It's now going for 75 cents.
That's not necessarily the case in the Permian Basin. One company we spoke with said 85 percent of their operations have not been affected since much of the Basin has underground aquifers.
Another company we spoke with said it is having a bigger impact. They say they're spending more to pull from deeper reservoirs to avoid using precious fresh water. They also say those fresh water aquifers are starting to dry up due to the growing amount of regional drilling activity.
But long-term solutions could be coming. There are some companies offering water recycling services, which can be expensive. We'll take an in-depth look at that process later this month.
If water shortages are hurting your operations, we'd love to hear from you on our Facebook page, KMID BIG 2.
You can also follow Mycah Glover on Facebook and Twitter.
