What happens to groundwater from CBM wells in the Forest City Basin?
Water disposal for CBM production is not a problem in Kansas. Water production rates are significantly less than those of coals in western states, and water from CBM wells in the Forest City Basin is slightly saline, and is required to be re-injected into the ground. CBM production water is commonly disposed into porous and permeable zones in the upper part of the Cambrian-Ordovician Arbuckle Dolomite. This disposal zone takes water on a vacuum, so no injection pumping is required. Experience suggests that for the Canary Resources acreage of the Eastern Forest City Basin, one deep disposal well is required for every 25 productive CBM wells. The salinity of the water from Eastern Forest City Basin CBM wells makes it unsuitable for less expensive alternatives such as surface discharge, impoundment, or crop irrigation which are prevalent elsewhere. Re-injection thus eliminates environmental concerns regarding disposition of marginal-quality CBM production water.
