We do not have many good news stories in the Welsh economy, but the recent news that Welsh shale gas reserves could be much higher than previously thought and would bring a much needed boost to the Welsh economy should be welcomed by all. To put things in perspective, the estimated reserves would make Wales self-sufficient in natural gas for 80 years.
However, there are already pressure groups set up spreading tales of doom and gloom about possible environmental risks, and point to cases in America where shale gas production has poisoned groundwater sources.
The problem is that in order to extract the gas you use a process called hydraulic fracturing , or Fragging, which uses high pressure water to shatter the rock which enables the trapped gas to be released. To make fragging more efficient chemicals are added to the water which aids the flow of gas from the rock, and these chemicals are not very friendly. In a few cases in America these chemicals have found their way into groundwater, contaminating drinking water wells. But the American situation is not the same as Wales, where the shale gas is to be found much deeper, and where we typically rely on rain-filled reservoirs for water, not susceptible groundwater.
However, there are already pressure groups set up spreading tales of doom and gloom about possible environmental risks, and point to cases in America where shale gas production has poisoned groundwater sources.
The problem is that in order to extract the gas you use a process called hydraulic fracturing , or Fragging, which uses high pressure water to shatter the rock which enables the trapped gas to be released. To make fragging more efficient chemicals are added to the water which aids the flow of gas from the rock, and these chemicals are not very friendly. In a few cases in America these chemicals have found their way into groundwater, contaminating drinking water wells. But the American situation is not the same as Wales, where the shale gas is to be found much deeper, and where we typically rely on rain-filled reservoirs for water, not susceptible groundwater.I don’t want to trivialise this potential problem, but we have to recognise that any industrial process has potential risks but providing these risks are identified and properly managed then this should not present any concerns. There is nothing inherently unsafe about the Fragging process and if wells are properly designed, constructed and maintained, with independent monitoring there is no reason why this should present any environmental problems.
But we must make sure that this natural resource is properly developed for the benefit of the Welsh economy, and not simply exploited and abandoned like our earlier coal industry. We need to ensure that the construction work is not over-reliant on an itinerant workforce with local contractors and support services used as far as possible, and most importantly that the World Bank Equator principles for sustainable development are applied.
UPDATE: This is in response to a comment below.
Good post Penddu - agreed that fracking does not necessarily pose the same risks in Cymru as over in the States.
ReplyDeleteOne thing i'm trying to clarify however, - is Shale gas the same as CBM? Surely they are different strata?
Draig.
No Shale gas & CBM are not the same - they are both methane (natural gas) but shale gas is held in ...shale, while CBM is Coalbed methane, which is found in ooal seams, which are nearer the surface.
ReplyDeletePenddu
Right, because the thing I'm curious about is that Eden were originally prospecting for CBM - and as you're probably aware CBM has considerable promise in South Wales too. So if we add the total resource together...
ReplyDeleteThanks for the diagram also :-)
Draig