Potential well water contaminants highest near natural gas drilling, UT Arlington study says
http://www.uta.edu/news/releases/2013/07/Schug-water-well-contaminants-study.php[font face=Serif][font size=5]Potential well water contaminants highest near natural gas drilling, UT Arlington study says[/font]
26 July 2013
Media Contact: Traci Peterson, Office:817-272-9208, Cell:817-521-5494,
[email protected]
[font size=3]A new study of 100 private water wells in and near the Barnett Shale showed elevated levels of potential contaminants such as arsenic and selenium closest to natural gas extraction sites, according to a team of researchers that was led by UT Arlington associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry Kevin Schug.
The results of the North Texas well study were published online by the journal
Environmental Science & Technology Thursday. The peer-reviewed paper focuses on the presence of metals such as arsenic, barium, selenium and strontium in water samples. Many of these heavy metals occur naturally at low levels in groundwater, but disturbances from natural gas extraction activities could cause them to occur at elevated levels.
This study alone cant conclusively identify the exact causes of elevated levels of contaminants in areas near natural gas drilling, but it does provide a powerful argument for continued research, said Brian Fontenot, a UT Arlington graduate with a doctorate in quantitative biology and lead author on the new paper.
He added: We expect this to be the first of multiple projects that will ultimately help the scientific community, the natural gas industry, and most importantly, the public, understand the effects of natural gas drilling on water quality.
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