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EPA Hears Citizen Concerns, Industry Assurances About Gas Drilling

USGS scientists connecting tubing to the Bedrock-Aquifer Transportable Testing Tool (BAT3). The BAT3 was used to conduct hydraulic tests on fractures and to collect water samples from fractures for chemical analysis
USGS scientists connecting tubing to the Bedrock-Aquifer Transportable Testing Tool (BAT3). The BAT3 was used to conduct hydraulic tests on fractures and to collect water samples from fractures for chemical analysis

By Shelley Kofler, KERA

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-911884.mp3

Fort Worth, TX – Almost 600 crowded a Fort Worth hearing Thursday night to tell the EPA what they want from a study on hydraulic fracturing. That's the drilling process used to produce natural gas from the Barnett Shale in North Texas. The EPA's national study will look at the effects of the drilling on drinking water.

More than 9,000 wells are now producing natural gas from the Barnett Shale, a geological formation beneath at least 17 North Texas counties. The EPA predicts that within a decade shale gas will comprise more than 20% of the total US gas supply.

But as production has grown so have concerns, and those concerns resonated through the EPA hearing as residents like Sharon Wilson, from Wise County, stepped up to the mic.

"If hydraulic fracturing is safe why does Halliburton need indemnification language releasing them from liability of any kind?" Wilson asked.

Wilson is among those who want the EPA to force gas producers to reveal the makeup of chemical fluids used in the so-called "fracking" process. That's where water, sand and fluid are forced down into the shale. The pressurized injection opens fissures in the rock allowing the gas to flow. Wilson believes the drilling fluids pose a danger to groundwater and the environment.

Many industry advocates suggest the concerns are overblown.

Candace Brewer represents a group earning royalties from natural gas drilling. She told the EPA she's unaware of any drinking water contamination from hydraulic fracturing. She seemed to caution the EPA against federal regulations that would step on state authority.

Texas Railroad Commission Chair Victor Carrillo also wanted to make it clear that his agency - not the EPA- is Texas' chief regulatory authority over oil and gas production.

"Regulating oil and gas activities have traditionally been the province of the states which have had effective programs in place for decades. Congress should maintain the status quo," Carrillo testified.

But many drilling critics believe the Railroad Commission is biased toward industry and they want the EPA to forcefully step in.

Tim Ruggiero owns ten acres in Wise County. He says he's living proof the state isn't protecting the public.

"I am one of those cases of contaminated drinking water. It's why I'm here tonight," Reggiero told the EPA.

Ruggiero says he tested his water just before and after gas producers began drilling on his property. He says water samples collected after the drilling started contain an unknown chemical similar to the gas additive MTBE. Ruggiero also complains of air contamination and state agencies unwilling to take action.

"It's virtually turned our life upside down. We can no longer just turn on the tap and drink water. We now have to bring in water at additional cost," he said.

Ruggiero says the appraised value of his house has also plummeted from $250,000 in 2004 to $78,000 following drilling this year.

The EPA plans to hold similar hearings in Colorado, Pennsylvania and New York. The testimony will help shape a study on hydraulic fracturing that begins this fall. The EPA will have preliminary results on how it affects drinking water by the end of next year.

That timeline clearly frustrated some like Robert Snoke, chairman of the Rosemont Neighborhood Association in Fort Worth. He challenged the EPA saying, "You are going to wait until I see something coming out of my faucet that's purple? Then I'm to call you? Well it's too late if it's in my water."

Those like Snoke want more industry scrutiny now. Industry representatives say they want enforcement following a thorough review based on science.

Email Shelley Kofler

EPA's Current Hydraulic Fracturing Study