Fracking - the pursuit of natural gas in stratified layers of sedimentary rock

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Mon, 2015-01-12 17:24

epaulo13

Fracking Industry Shakes Up Northern BC with 231 Tremors

British Columbia's shale gas fracking industry triggered more than 231 earthquakes or ''seismic events'' in northeastern British Columbia between Aug. 2013 and Oct. 2014.

Some of the quakes were severe enough to ''experience a few seconds of shaking'' on the ground in seven areas of the province on top of the large Montney shale gas basin.

The events, many of which occurred in clusters or swarms, showed that the regulation of the industry still lags behind the pace of drilling activity in the region.

''Induced seismicity related to wastewater disposal and hydraulic fracturing within the Montney (a 29,850 square-kilometre underground siltstone formation) indicates a more uniform application of regulations is appropriate,'' concluded a December report by the BC Oil and Gas Commission.

The 32-page report states that 38 tremors were caused by the injection of wastewater produced by fracking operations and another 193 events were directly attributed to the hydraulic fracturing of hundreds of horizontal wells in the region....

http://thetyee.ca/News/2015/01/10/Fracking_Industry_Shakes_Up_Northern_BC/

Tue, 2015-01-13 15:18

#103

ikosmos

Ukraine - the West's next fracking victim

There is plenty more on this subject but little of it is reported in Western media. The above article is from last October. There is more, very recent, news on fracking in eastern Ukraine [war zone] but I have seen the headline and then forgot where I saw it. Will look.

Tue, 2015-01-13 17:00

#104

KenS

All those articles linked to about shale gas in the Ukraine are nothing more than a combination of oil company and government dreaming out loud.

There is precious little going on- even before war broke out, and even in western Ukraine, probably only enough to keep up appearances / oil company commitments.

The idea that it is an asset that would attract and motivate the US is a joke.

They cannot even get shale gas going in similar and nearby basins in Poland- with no wars, no economic chaos, high gas prices, and the same strategic arguments.

Tue, 2015-01-13 19:08

#105

ikosmos

KenS wrote:
They cannot even get shale gas going in similar and nearby basins in Poland- with no wars, no economic chaos, high gas prices, and the same strategic arguments.

Public protest, which is basically under a jackboot in Ukraine if it isn't supportive of the Kiev regime, is a big factor in Poland, don't you agree?

Poland's Shale Gas Revolution Evaporates in the Face of Environmental Protests

Tue, 2015-01-13 19:51

#106

KenS

I have not looked anything up, and do not closely follow industry development events that far afield.

But I know these companies, and it is a very safe bet that they will be out of western Ukraine as fast as they can... only maintaining as little of a token presence as they can get away with and still keep their contracts. And if there is the slightest pressure on them to substantively live up to the promises of development pace in those contracts, they will just give up the contracts period.

Tue, 2015-01-13 19:52

#107

ikosmos

I can't tell whether you agree with the assessment of the Guardian author [that environmental protests in Poland was a significant/critical factor in ending shale gas development] or whether you were just choosing to ignore my question.

Tue, 2015-01-13 20:07

#108

KenS

Both what I say and the Guardian author say are true. Describing different parts of the same elephant.

Here is one connecting thread. In Poland and here, it is protesters chasing around a handful of wells being drilled. At that point the companies are still testing the water to see if they even want to be there- even if allowed to do whatever they want.

We essentially make up their minds for them. Other companies had already given up in Poland, without protests. The protests made sure that Chevron joined them.

Very similar thing here. I live where they just gave up- no protests. Its just a few wells at first. So us being the guinea pigs, we had no idea what it was about until they were gone [this is 7 years ago- eons in the fracking industry- there were only dozens of wells in Pennsylvannia then, with many thousands now].

The attempts at development in New Brunswick came 5 years later. And the shit hit the fan. As it would here if there is ever a next time around.

Tue, 2015-01-13 20:25

#109

KenS

I agree that it is accurate to say that environmentalist chased out the companies in Poland. The full story being more complex than that does not change it.

You posted a story about the great prospects in the Ukraine. I pointed out that media EVERYWHERE is into publishing inflated hype about the great local prospects. So the stories mean nothing, and from what I know, little or nothing is going on or will go on. Governments in Nova Scotia or Ukraine will never say that.

Then you linked a story that the companies were chased out of Poland, and SPECULATED that does not happen in Ukraine because any protests would be snuffed.

I pointed out that here, where protests have also ended development- for now at least- as in Poland, companies were giving up on development before the protests.

Development in the Ukraine has not even really got started- so there is no reason to expect that there would be any visible protests.

The whole question is or will soon be moot- the comapnies will not want to be anywhere in the Ukraine now, even if they get boot licking red carpet treatment from the government.

Tue, 2015-01-13 20:29

#110

KenS

Shale gas development is subject to a complex set of factors.

Poland [and probably Ukraine] is similar to here in the Maritimes.

The companies stepped back early on of their own volition: dynamics of the market, before there was a breath of opposition.

This gives space for the newly arisen enrionmental protests to get the upper hand. Meanwhile the oil companies keep hyping up the local prospects as if the (stalled) development is just ready to take off.

We essentially dont give them room to get that second chance. The dirty little secret of the proponents is that at the time we get them barred from development, they STILL were not ready to go ahead, even if no one stood in their way. [New York is the exception to that- where development would have started right awayhad the Governor lifted the moratorium.]

The shale gas 'revolution' is locally only a fantasy. What evaporates is the companies' chance (some time in the future) to turn that into reality... assuming public anger about fracking remains high.

All that is going on in Ukraine is the "trying it out" level of shale gas development that earlier stalled of its own [market force] accord here and in Poland.

So you are presuming a jackboot on western Ukraine environmentalist organizing that probably has not developed yet.

Wed, 2015-01-14 00:22

#111

ikosmos

KenS wrote:
The whole question is or will soon be moot- the comapnies will not want to be anywhere in the Ukraine now, even if they get boot licking red carpet treatment from the government.

Dunno. That country has such serious financial problems that they may choose to make a fire sale of public assets, privatize everything in sight [they've already done that, in part, with the war against eastern Ukraine], and use the military as a means to provide "security" for fracking. Yats and Poroshenko (especially the former) are supporters of neo-conservative austerity. There are even some reports that suggest the main economic aim of repression in eastern Ukraine is to allow the fracking and related "development" to go on. An overlap of interests as it were.

I thought I saw an article claiming that there was fracking going on, already, in eastern Ukraine but the story seems to have gone down the rabbit hole. If I find it, or a related story, I will post here.

Wed, 2015-01-14 04:01

#112

KenS

At this point, and for the forseeable future even for some time after the fighting stops, it is not a queation of the countries desire to have revenue from fracking [which is very limited by the way].

The "security" they would have to provide to make it happen is not to keep the non-existant protestors away, it would be forcing the oil companies and their crews to work.

That would truly be a unique story.

Tue, 2015-02-24 15:52

#113

epaulo13

Demanding Outright Ban, Broad Alliance In Scotland Escalates Anti-Fracking Movement

Scotland’s government under the Scottish National Party recently announced a moratorium on fracking. The Radical Independence Campaign responded by repeating its call for an outright ban on all forms of unconventional fuel extraction. Using new powers devolved to Scotland since the independence referendum last fall, the moratorium is just one example of the political transformation currently underway here.

The SNP is predicted to win 42 of Scotland’s 59 seat at the 2015 U.K. general election – an eight-fold increase that would make it Britain’s third largest party. Pollsters give the party a 42% chance of joining a U.K. coalition government. Combined with the #GreenSurge, it's safe to say that the era of British two-party rule appears to be ending....

http://www.occupy.com/article/demanding-outright-ban-broad-alliance-scot...

Click for a larger view

Mon, 2016-10-10 17:11

#114

epaulo13

First Nations communities in the Gaspé unite against fracking

A group of First Nations communities in Quebec have come out in opposition to hydraulic fracturing projects on their territories in the Gaspé and on Anticosti Island.

Faced with a number of potential energy projects, Mi'kmaq communities in Gespeg, Listuguj and Gesgapegiag have teamed up with the Innu people in Mingan and Maliseets from Viger to demand respect for their ancestral rights.

The group is denouncing Petrolia in particular, after the company announced it was considering hydro fracking for its Haldimand sites, located next to a residential area in Gaspé.

The First Nations communities are concerned about the effect the Petrolia project could have on habitat, wildlife and drinking water.

The head of the Mi'kmaq Gespeg Nation, Manon Jeannotte, said that they are ready to take legal action if the communities are not properly consulted....

Fri, 2016-11-18 08:05

#115

Rikardo

The message I get from the No Fracking Way activists is that developing and producing more hydrocarbons is OK as long as tnere's no Fracking. With global warming the message should be no more oil or gas wells of anty kind.

Fracking - the pursuit of natural gas in stratified layers of sedimentary rock

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