The Environmental Protection Agency is set to start a federal probe into whether the controversial natural gas drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is spoiling and/or diminishing drinking water supplies in Louisiana, Texas, Pennsylvania, North Dakota and Colorado. Fracking involves injecting, under high pressure, millions of gallons of water along with sand and chemicals into a natural gas well as a means of extracting gas deep within through fissures created by the technique. The agency’s final study plan was released today. The research will look at where companies performing hydraulic fracturing get their water and how much they use. It will also try to pinpoint the cause of alleged water contamination—looking at aboveground spills, well design and the fracturing process itself. The first results will be available in 2012.
EPA to probe gas drilling’s toll on La. drinking water
Sign up for the free Daily Report email – local news about the people, companies and issues that impact business impact business in Baton Rouge and beyond.
