There Is No Such Thing As Safe Disposal Of Fracking Waste

Here is an alarming report about a large leak of saltwater "fracking" waste:

The federal Environmental Protection Agency said the underground pipeline spilled about 24,000 barrels, or 1 million gallon, in North Dakota’s thriving oil and gas region. The water, which can be 10 times saltier than seawater and contains salt and fossil fuel condensates, was being piped away from fuel extraction sites for safe disposal.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-07-15/huge-nd-wastewater-spill-prompts-calls-fracking-regs

"Safe disposal"? What does that mean?

There is only one thing they can do with it: pump it back into the ground (with or without purifying it first). The strata into which it is pumped are seldom as stable as the strata from which it was extracted, and a chemical concoction of unknown composition is carried down with it. That is "safe"? It may stay down there for a while, but it's coming back up ... sooner or later ... into a groundwater formation near you.

Not mentioned in the report is another important issue. As a former environmental permit reviewer, I am keenly aware that well drillers and frackers are producing huge amounts of drill cuttings. This leftover debris from the drilling process is often just dumped into the ocean or onto the ground somewhere. Sometimes an effort is made to recover petroleum from it, but often it is just dumped as is.

I also can state from experience that even conscientious drillers and disposal firms do not know the exact composition of these materials. In my view all of it constitutes a spill hazard at least as dangerous as the saltwater leak discussed in the above report. It may be "contained" somewhere now, but most of it eventually will be released into the environment.

That's the nature of "waste", whether from oil drilling or from nuclear power plants. There's no money to be made from it, so it's warehoused somewhere as cheaply as possible and ultimately forgotten ... until it leaks out into your worst nightmare.

Enjoy your "cheap" natural gas while you can. Your children and grandchildren will be paying for it in spades in a few decades (and possibly sooner).

Update: California has been pumping fracking waste directly into "abandoned" aquifers. What a dumbass move!

http://www.valuewalk.com/2014/07/fracking-waste-aquifers/