* Waste water disposal poses higher risk for quakes
* Only one quake officially linked to fracking
* Best practices protocol should be developed
(Adds comment from industry group, analyst)
By Ayesha Rascoe
WASHINGTON, June 15 (Reuters) – The fracking drilling
technique used to tap shale oil and gas is unlikely to trigger
earthquakes, but underground injection of waste water from
drilling offers more risks for seismic activity, a new U.S.
study said on Friday.
The National Research Council study, which also examined the
risk of earthquakes associated with tapping geothermal energy
and carbon capture and storage, found that the total balance of
fluid injected or removed underground was the biggest factor in
causing earthquakes related to energy development.
“Although induced seismic events associated with these
energy technologies have not resulted in loss of life or
significant damage in the United States, some effects have been
felt by local residents and have raised concern about additional
seismic activity,” the council said.
Researchers have known since the 1920s that injecting or
withdrawing fluids from the ground could cause earthquakes, the
report said, but the issue has come to the fore in recent years
as states such as Arkansas, Ohio and Texas experienced small
tremors associated with waste water disposal from oil and gas
drilling.
Advances in hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, have
dramatically increased U.S. oil and gas production from shale
formations, but critics have charged that the drilling activity
is polluting the water and air. Opponents of fracking have also
raised concerns about possible earthquakes.
The council’s report said fracking does not pose a high
risk for seismic events, citing only one 2.3 magnitude
earthquake in Blackpool, England that has been officially linked
to fracking for shale gas.
“It’s refreshing to know that yet another scientific inquiry
has confirmed what all of us who were interested in facts
already knew: there is no legitimate reason to believe hydraulic
fracturing will cause earthquakes,” said Steve Everley, of
Energy In Depth, an industry campaign backing shale gas
production.
While waste water disposal wells pose more seismic risks,
the report said cases of these wells causing earthquakes have
been rare and typically less than 5.0 in magnitude.
“Although the number of felt induced seismic events relative
to the tens of thousands of produced water injection wells is
small, the events themselves can cause considerable public
concern,” the report said.
Kevin Book, an analyst with Clearview Energy Partners, said
in a research note the study’s findings on waste water wells may
lead local regulators to require geologic surveys ahead of
disposal well construction. This could add to costs for well
operators.
Requested by Senator Jeff Bingaman, the Democrat in charge
of the Senate energy committee, the report said more research is
needed to better quantify the risks associated with energy
production and called for development of best practices to help
prevent or mitigate seismic events.
The Senate energy committee is scheduled to hold a hearing
on examining the link between earthquakes and energy technology
on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Ayesha Rascoe; editing by Sofina Mirza-Reid and
David Gregorio)
