Science

Texas energy group takes issue with Duke University water study

Dusty Read checks the clean water tank Dec. 5, 2017 at Challenger Water Solutions’ water recycling system demonstration facility. Consisting of a control room container and two containers that do the actual water cleaning, the entire system can be transported on two semi trucks. The system, primarily focused on oil fracking operations at the moment, is price competitive with pumping ground water according to the company. Photo: William Luther, Staff / San Antonio Express-News

A Texas energy group has taken issue with the conclusions of a recent Duke University that water use in the booming Permian Basin oil field of West Texas skyrocketed between 2011 and 2016.

The study, published in mid-August, said water use in the Permian had increased 767 percent between 2011 and 2016, and that water use across all six of the U.S. shale plays studied had increased. The report was compiled by researchers at Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment and was published by science journal Science Advances.

In a statement, John Tintera, president of the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers, said his group "appreciates" the resources that Duke University put into the studies on hydraulic fracturing, the process used to crack shale rock and extract oil and gas. But he noted that North Carolina, where the university is located, does not have an crude oil reserves or production.

Tintera made his own summary of the Duke University report — "If you use water to drill oil wells, and you drill more and bigger oil wells, you will use more water."

He pointed to the […]

More about Texas water, contamination, and injection wells:

Earthquakes in Heart of Texas Oil Country Spur Water Crackdown

Radium contamination in water most widespread in Texas, environmental group says

Duke Study: Rivers Contaminated With Radium and Lead From Thousands of Fracking Wastewater Spills

El Paso to drink treated sewage water due to climate change drought

Summary
Article Name
Texas energy group takes issue with Duke University water study
Description
Hydraulic fracturing (fracking) study: trade group notes North Carolina, where Duke University is located, does not have crude oil reserves or production.
Author
Publisher Name
Houston Chronicle
Publisher Logo

Recent Posts

Saltwater intrusion will taint 77% of coastal aquifers by century’s end, modeling study finds

Watersheds on the U.S. Eastern Seaboard will be among the areas most affected by underground…

1 week ago

A ‘Devil’ Seaweed Is Spreading Inside Hawaiʻi’s Most Protected Place

An invasive algae has wrecked huge sections of reef in Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. Scientists…

1 week ago

A meadow in the Tahoe National Forest was drying up with sagebrush. Now it’s a lush wetland.

Sardine Meadow is a key link in conservation efforts for the Sierra Nevada, north of…

2 weeks ago

Conservation & Sustainability: fertilizer nitrates

UC Davis researchers insert a device that continuously collects water samples underground, providing real-time data…

3 weeks ago

Drought Mitigation: Should We Be Farming in the Desert?

Irrigated farmland in the desert of the Imperial Valley. (Photo credit: Steve Proehl, Getty Images)…

3 weeks ago

Scathing report released detailing Navy’s handling of Red Hill fuel spill

The Inspector General of the Department of Defense released some scathing reports Thursday over the…

1 month ago