How long have oil and gas operators been using hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale formation?
The first horizontal well drilled in the Marcellus was by Range Resources in 2004. Since then, 1,681 wells have been drilled in Pennsylvania. For perspective, Pennsylvania currently has 55,631 producing natural gas wells. 4) What steps do Marcellus Shale operators take to protect groundwater during hydraulic fracturing? Safety and environmental protection is the MSC’s highest priority. Every step of the hydraulic fracturing process — from the initial boring of the well to its sealing after it has run dry — is conducted in accordance with state requirements. Specifically, well holes are cased with steel piping and cement to ensure that fracturing fluids from deep below the surface do not come in contact with the aquifers. When the fracturing fluids return to the surface, they are impounded, treated and in the majority of cases are recycled and used to fracture additional wells. 5) What’s in fracking fluid? Composed almost entirely of a water and sand (more than 99.5 percent)[2], this
