Natural Gas Production in Eastern Kentucky Had a Negative Impact on Water Quality - Essay Example

Has the recent surge in oil and natural gas production in eastern Kentucky had a negative impact on water quality/quantity in the area? The increased energy needs of countries worldwide has led to the expansion of activities that aim to address the above needs, either in the short or the long term. Usually, the relevant initiatives are not appropriately monitored leading to severe environmental damages. The problem is acute both in the developed and the developing countries. The oil and gas production activities developed in eastern Kentucky are indicative cases of such type; efforts have been made by the local authorities to minimize the effects of these activities on the region’s natural environment, however, this target has not been fully achieved. The particular problem is examined in this paper. A series of reports published in regard to this issue are presented and critically discussed. Reference is made specifically to the impact of the oil and gas production in eastern Kentucky on the region’s water quality/ quantity. It has been proved that oil and gas production have contributed to the pollution of water across eastern Kentucky; the role of these activities in the pollution/ limitation of the region’s water may not be as high as initially estimated – especially because other activities, of similar type, i.e. coal mining activities, have also been found to be involved in the particular problem. However, oil and gas production are major contributors in the pollution/ limitation of water in eastern Kentucky, as reflected in the findings of relevant studies; measures should be introduced for the appropriate monitoring of these activities aiming to control their effects on the region’s water. In order to understand the effects of oil and natural gas production in eastern Kentucky on the water quantity/ quality in the particular area, it would be necessary to describe the geographical structure of the region, especially in regard to its water deposits and their distribution/ use. The Kentucky River is a key feature in the greater region; its basin is quite expanded (Graph 1) covering the needs in water of about 42 counties and 710,000 people (Kentucky River Watershed 2011). The river system has been estimated to 420 miles in total (Kentucky River Watershed 2011). In these terms, the protection of the quality and the quantity of the water of the River would be of significant value, taking into consideration the fact that the drilling works developed near the River can ‘pollute or dry up wells in a zone expanded in many miles’ (Kentucky River Watershed 2011). In other words, the oil and gas production developed across the eastern Kentucky region can affect the quality/ quantity of water in the region, even if the relevant works are developed far from water sources, a fact that has been emphasized in the studies and the reports discussing the particular problem. Kentucky, as also the other states, has ‘to assess regularly the quality/ quantity of its waters and report the findings to the Congress’ (Alford 2010). In accordance with a recent report, the major part of the Kentucky River has suffered damages, a fact, which has been related to, the coal mining and the oil/ gas production activities developed across the particular area (Alford 2010). More specifically, it has been proved that the pollution caused to the River because of the above activities is not standardized along the River – in certain parts of the River the pollution is extremely high leading experts to advice avoiding swimming in the areas involved. The problem is quite important if taking into consideration the fact that among the ‘939 miles of streams tested’ (Alford 2010) only the 219 miles have been found to be appropriate for swimming; in the rest parts of the River basin the water is so polluted that swimming would be avoided; the above findings have been revealed through a 4-years study in the context of which the quality and quantity of the River’s waters have been carefully examined. The oil and gas production activities in Eastern Kentucky, as all similar activities across USA, are monitored by the Energy and Environment Cabinet, aiming to ensure that the relevant risks for the natural environment are minimized – a target, which seems as not fully achieved. In accordance with a geological survey of eastern Kentucky, as published by the Kentucky Department for energy development and independence - part of the above governmental authority – the oil and gas production of eastern Kentucky its significant; the state contributes to the country’s oil and gas production at a level of 12% - referring to the energy needs of USA annually (Energy and Environment Cabinet, Kentucky Oil and Gas overview). The development of oil and gas production in Kentucky hides risks for the region’s quantity and quality of water, for the following reason: because the deposits in oil and gas in zones which are of limited depth (referring to zones of approximate 100 feet in depth) have been reduced, the increase in the depth of drilling has become unavoidable. Currently it is estimated that drilling works for oil and gas production are developed across Eastern Kentucky in a depth of more than 7,500 feet (Energy and Environment Cabinet, Kentucky Oil and Gas overview). The increase of risk for the quality/ quantity of the region’s water is clear. The specific risk is highlighted in a report of the Kentucky Division of Water in 2006; in accordance with the above report the increase in the pollution of the region’s water is continuous; in fact, the review of the status/ quality of the water in Eastern Kentucky revealed that there are many more streams of the Kentucky River that ‘don’t fully support aquatic life’ (Alford 2006), than initially estimated. Because the level of the pollutants identified in the water of the River has been high, suggestions have been made to people in Kentucky to reduce the consumption of fish – reference is made specifically to the fish of the streams of the Kentucky River (Alford 2006). At this point it should be noted that the findings of the above study led to the assumption that agriculture is the sector that mostly affects the quality of water in Kentucky River; energy-related activities, such as coal mining, oil and gas production activities have been found to contribute to the pollution of the River’s waters, but have been set in the second position of the relevant hierarchy. The relation between the energy related activities – referring to the coal mining and oil/ gas production activities, and the pollution of water in Kentucky has led to severe turbulences in the state’s authorities. The reason is that the measures taken by the central governmental authorities, that have the responsibility of monitoring such projects, have been found to be ineffective, a problem that has led to a series of lawsuits for the damages caused to individuals because of the water contamination. This issue is highlighted by Gooch – one of the representatives of Democrats in the Kentucky House of Representatives. Gooch has noted that the above problem is so expanded that even a recession from the Union could be resulted, a fact though that would have, in accordance with Gooch, severe consequences on the cooperation/ communication among authorities in the particular region (Bruggers 2011). At this point, the following facts should be mentioned: oil and gas infrastructure in Kentucky can be characterized as quite satisfactory; in fact, the use of advanced technology in the relevant activities can minimize the time required for their completion; however, still their effects on the environment cannot be fully controlled (Energy and Environment Cabinet 2011). The above issue has been carefully reviewed by the governmental authorities, it is noted that oil and gas operations cannot be fully controlled, as of their effects on the environment; for this reason, these activities are likely to lead to conflicts regarding the protection of the environment (Energy and Environment Cabinet 2011). The problem is further increased because of the fact that the deposits of oil and gas in zones of short depth have been significantly reduced and the drilling in zones that are of high depth has become necessary. The continuation of this practice would have severe effects on the quality/ quantity of water, even if it does not last for long. Already, the pollution of the water of the Kentucky River has been increased at such levels that the authorities suggest the people to avoid consuming fish up from a particular level, from the River; also suggestions have been made to people to avoid swimming in certain streams of Kentucky River (as explained above). In the near future, the expansion of the problem would be out of control. Moreover, reference should be made to the findings of the study of Blakeney and Marshall (2009); the above researchers tried to identify the potential relation between human activities and the Water Quality. The relevant research was developed in Kentucky – focusing on the effects of coal mining activities on the quality of the water of the Kentucky River. After researching the above issue, they came to the conclusion that, indeed, human activities can negatively affect water quality; reference is made to Kentucky, where a relation has been found between the pollution of water and the coal mining activities. It is assumed that similar findings would be revealed if the research would be related to the oil and gas production activities developed across Kentucky. Another severe problem related to the oil and gas production in Eastern Kentucky is the fact that the data available for the relevant activities are not clear or adequate; more specifically, it seems that the specific activities are not closely monitored so that the development of accurate assumptions for their effects of the environment is not feasible (Energy and Environment Cabinet 2011). Another issue highlighted in the report published by the Energy and Environment Cabinet in 2011 regarding the oil and gas production activities in Kentucky is the following one: the investment on research and development in relation to the above activities is quite limited; in fact, the funds invested on these projects cannot support the development of extensive controls on all these activities’ phases. The negative impact of these activities on the water resources of Eastern Kentucky, even if it exists, it cannot be accurately monitored or controlled (Energy and Environment Cabinet 2011). The above assumption is verified through the article published in New York Times in 2009; in the particular article reference is made to the inability of ‘the Clean Water Act of 1972’ (New York Times 2009) to achieve the targets set by its initiators; reference is made specifically to the failure of the above Act as identified in the case of Kentucky; in accordance with the data collected from 11,421 facilities monitoring and reporting the quantity/ quality of water across the above state, the violations of the legislation regarding the pollution of water are continuous; most of the above facilities reported at least one violation of the relevant legislation in the specific state (New York Times 2009). The issues highlighted above leads to the assumption that the oil and gas production in eastern Kentucky has affected the quality and quantity of water in the region but not as high as potentially expected; in fact, due to the efforts made by the local communities, the effects of the oil and gas production on the natural environment in eastern Kentucky (including the water sources of the region) have been effectively controlled. However, the relevant risk has not been eliminated, meaning that the threat for pollution/ limitation of water deposits in eastern Kentucky has not been extinguished, despite the initiatives developed by the region’s authorities and the locals. The specific problem is highlighted in the studies developed in the particular subject, as indicatively presented above; it seems that the key problem regarding the protection of the region’s quality/ quantity of water is the lack of effective plan of action. Indeed, all relevant initiatives have managed to control the problem, but just temporarily. The need for the development of a scheme that will eliminate the risks related to the oil and gas production in the specific region – referring to the effects of these activities on the quality/ quantity of water – is emergent. Works Cited Alford, Roger. “More monitoring uncovers more water pollution in Kentucky.” December 26, 2006.Associated Press. 27 April 2011 Alford, Roger. “Pollution still hearts Kentucky River.” July 26, 2010. KyPost. 27 April 2011 Blakeney, Anne & Marshall, Amy. “Water Quality, Health, and Human Occupations” January/February 2009. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 63(1): 46-57 27 April 2011 Bruggers, James. “Legislator: Secession is option.” January 6, 2011. Courier Journal. 27 April 2011 Energy and Environment Cabinet. Department for Natural Resources. 2011. Oil and Gas History. 27 April 2011. < http://oilandgas.ky.gov/Pages/Welcome.aspx> “Kentucky River Watershed facts”. 2011. Kentucky River Watershed. 27 April 2011. The New York Times. April 27, 2011 “Find Water Polluters Near You” 27 April 2011 Appendix Graph 1 – Kentucky River Basin (Source: Kentucky River Watershed 2011) Read More