The shale gas industry's rapid
expansion has introduced risks of serious accidents, explosions, worker
injuries, property damage and environmental harm.
Specifically, Marcellus Shale
exploration and drilling causes industrial accidents including well blowouts,
fires, methane leaks, loss of well control and gas migration.
Marcellus Shale
Marcellus Shale -- a deep
underground rock formation extending from Ohio and West Virginia into
Pennsylvania -- holds the United States largest natural gas reserve comprised of
hundreds of trillions of cubic feet of natural gas.
Although geologists have
known about this massive reserve for years, recent drilling innovations including
hydraulic fracturing ("Fracking"), coupled with higher energy prices,
have greatly increased mining of Marcellus Shale natural gas.
According to the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection, 2,500 Marcellus Shale drilling permits
were issued between 2007 and 2009 and 5,000 permits were issued in 2010.
Fracking
Each project involves constructing
a "well pad" and drilling a "well bore" to depths of up to 6,000
feet.
The majority of Marcellus
Shale wells use “fracking”, high pressure pumping of millions of gallons of
chemically-treated water mixed with sand deep into the ground to break up the
shale and release trapped natural gas.
Drilling fluid wastewater spills
or leaking into holding pits pollutes rivers, streams and aquifers killing fish
and contaminating local water supplies.
Marcellus Shale Accidents
The oil and gas exploration
industry's growth has strained existing state regulatory safeguards exposing
property owners, businesses and workers to accidents, injuries and
environmental damage.
Drill operators often
encounter unexpected natural gas pressures in areas that haven’t been drilled
previously causing blowouts and injuries.
Further, sparks from a drill bit can ignite trapped methane, a highly
volatile gas, severely burning workers.
Natural gas also migrates
underground from improperly constructed wells, building up to explosive
pressure beneath houses and buildings.
Injuries in a Marcellus Shale
well drilling accident often result from the employer's negligence or lack of
workplace safeguards.
Further, those whose property
is damaged or contaminated by well drilling, may have claims against a drilling
rig operator or gas exploration companies.
