[coffeeshopgoth]

You are totally right, the amount of chemical in comparison to the total frac job is small, but when you start putting 8-16 wells in the same space where once we only did 4, then it starts to add up. I used to have a full chemical list somewhere, but can't seem to find it right now. Also, to your point, things like benzene and toluene are in the mix at times - and if a company has a "proprietary" mix there can easily be some really rough carcinogens in that, too. This is a slightly different topic, but the amount of clean water used in the process is an eye opener. Say you will have 8 wells on a 1280 spacing (so 2 mile laterals, roughly), and they use 75,000 bbls of water - fresh water, you can't have any side reactions happening and recycled water adds significant cost to an already pricey well (probably $7.2- $8 million each for drill/completion), that is 25.2 million gallons of water for just one pad of wells. In terms of future water access, coupled with "is that water clean?", it becomes a real issue. Typically frac flowback water is dumped to a lined pit (which, at times, it can leak through to the ground water), and that water is then transported to an injection well nearby to inject at some point below the water table. But you can't always trust people to do that right things when costs come up. There are bad injection wells where the water is absorbed at the water table level.

[hilbert42]

It's good you added those figures to put fracking into perspective. I've also seen the chemical list sans info on the proprietary stuff but it was a while ago and the details escape me (but I do recall being rather alarmed as they weren't innocuous by any means).

You're right about the amount of water used, where I am in Australia fracking is very controversial not only because of the water usage (this is a very dry country) but also that fracking sites were on some of the best farming land in the country.

[coffeeshopgoth]

True story. I have been to SA a number of times and know have seen how dry it can get down there (though with what water you have, it is beautiful). We also have a lot of farmers and ranchers picking up the oil and gas royalty income in the U.S. Weird thing/something I have never really gotten over in terms of agriculture...Not frac water, but produced formation water (which is also usually reinjected for disposal - and that is a whole other topic that is concerning), is land applied in some areas for cattle to drink. Here is the thing - it is potable for animals but not safe for human consumption, yet we will eventually eat them. Produced formation water (ancient seawater with some heavier and sometimes slightly radioactive materials) doesn't strike me as something anything living could properly filter. The practice is common in Wyoming - where a lot of beef cattle live. Not sure about TX, but wouldn't be surprised if it was acceptable practice there.

[hilbert42]

Well you know the place then, similarly I've been to the US many times, have worked there and have relatives there.

"We also have a lot of farmers and ranchers picking up the oil and gas royalty income in the U.S."

For many, it's probably a pragmatic decision and a guarantee of income in bad seasons. I don't think it's that different here although many farmers have objected, especially in Queensland's Darling Downs which has some of the best farming land in the country as I mentioned. These links fill in the details, it's quite tragic really:

https://www.climatecouncil.org.au/resources/australia-existi...

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-14/coal-seam-gas-wells-d...

What's really annoying is that the multinationals are exporting the gas at high world prices and we have to pay parity—and even then there's a shortage here especially in the populated South-East. Locals, pay huge gas and electricity prices even though we've an abundance. It's maddening but understandable as in this so-called democracy the corporations essentially run the place.

"...it is potable for animals but not safe for human consumption, it'swe will eventually eat them."

This is quite outrageous really, especially if those chemicals include traces of aromatic and chlorinated hydrocarbons as they aren't necessarily broken down in animals so they're passed onto us. You'll get the concern that many here have from those links.

As you probably know, the equivalent to your formation waters here is the Great Artesian Basin https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Artesian_Basin. It too is under assault, read the section on 'Environmental Concerns'.

It's all quite depressing really.