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John Stolz began researching the effects of gas-drilling in 2010, not long after the hydrofracturing boom took hold in Pennsylvania. These days, the Duquesne University microbiologist regularly serves as an independent expert on how fracking — in which large volumes of water, sand and chemicals are injected underground under high pressure to break up rock formations containing gas — can affect well water.
His best-known research involves the Woodlands, a rural Butler County community where residents began complaining of declining well-water quality shortly after gas drilling began there in 2010. Many still rely on donated water to survive. Recently, Stolz — director of Duquesne University’s Center for Environmental Research and Education — completed a three-year study, including water testing and surveys of Woodlands residents. A summary released in April reported that 56 of the 143 households surveyed (39 percent) had seen changes in their water quality, most often involving the water’s color or smell. Though the findings are complex, the study concluded that it’s “quite plausible” that drilling and related activities — including some 65 horizontal wells in the immediate area — had affected the local hydrology. (The full report is due in June.)
Contamination isn’t unique to the Woodlands: Statewide, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has confirmed more than 250 cases where drilling-related activities damaged water supplies. And recently, Stolz’s research team collected samples from a Washington County community where fracking is occurring. “It’s red water, it’s brown water, it’s black water,” he says.
Stolz has been informing public debate on hydrofracturing for a while. Pittsburgh City Council requested his input before approving a citywide ban on fracking. In 2012, Stolz was part of the energy and environment “visioning team” of newly elected Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald. And earlier this month, Stolz was among a handful of presenters invited to speak at a special meeting of county council, prior to council’s controversial vote on permitting drilling beneath Deer Lakes Park. Councilor Sue Means called the meeting out of concern that industry voices were dominating the discussion. But the May 1 meeting was lightly attended, and despite environmental and health concerns raised there by Stolz and other experts, council approved the drilling proposal, which Fitzgerald signed.
Stolz also contributes to a lower-profile initiative: He’s technical adviser to a coalition of environmental groups that has been meeting with state officials in Harrisburg to try to improve how the state deals with drilling-related water-quality issues. The group includes representatives from six groups, including the Sierra Club and Penn Environment. “I’m glad to have John in the room” to explain technical points, says Steve Hvozdovich, who represents Clean Water Action on the coalition.
“Our goal is to help DEP do their job better,” says Stolz.
Among other issues, the coalition notes that when citizens complain of fouled water, the state routinely tests for only a narrow range of contaminants — usually leaving out dangerous toxins like mercury, chromium, cadmium and beryllium. “They could be reporting on more stuff,” says Stolz.
The coalition’s key Harrisburg contact has been Scott Perry, the deputy secretary of DEP’s Office of Oil and Gas Management. “We very much value their input,” says Perry of the coalition. But Perry sounds unlikely to back a change in testing standards. He says that unless other contaminants are suspected, the DEP tests only for substances likely to indicate contamination related to drilling. To “test for everything under the sun every single time,” he tells City Paper, is both inappropriate and a strain on resources.
“When we’re talking about health and safety and whether someone has safe drinking water, to me that’s tough to place a price tag on,” argues Hvozdovich. “If it’s a resource issue, then our state needs to step up.”
Stolz also worries that drillers and regulators pay too little attention to “legacy issues” — the presence of old coal mines and conventional gas wells drilled before the fracking arrived on the scene. He believes contaminants associated with mine drainage that are found in some water wells are caused by new “conduits” in the rock created by fracking. He says old mines in places like the Deer Lakes Park area might well cause problems if drilling happens.
“The damage,” he says, “is gonna start popping up in places it’s never popped up before.”
This article appears in May 21-27, 2014.
We at Friends of the Harmed, publishers of Shalefield Stories have been collecting first hand testimonials from people all over the country who have had water contamination due to fracking related incidents. The industry will tell you “not one confirmed case of contamination from Fracking” which is how they get away with it. The fracking process itself may not cause the contamination but, spills, leaking well casings and illegal dumping have been the cause of hundreds of water contamination accidents. It is a major problem wherever fracking is being done. I would like the readers to think about what it would be like if they could not use the water coming out of their taps for drinking or bathing! We hear about so many organizations helping third world countries solve potable water issues for people when in fact right here in America, thousands of families are living without potable water as a result of oil and gas activities. Here in PA HUNDREDS of families have been affected, yet our legislators and our governor are still promoting this toxic industrial process. Why? because of $$ in campaign contributions, and other financial donations to communities from the O&G industry. The O&G industry has contaminated our environment, health and our democracy. Rich Fitzgerald is a perfect example. Check out the $$ he had been given and the PG articles when he was running for County Executive. People have no idea what’s at risk when it comes to fracking. The worst part, many of these families have been without water for more than 6 years now. Read Shalefieldstories.org and hear first hand from many of those families.
This article points out several important issues that the public is unaware of. Water is not comprehensively tested. It is tested for a handful of chemicals, not for all the contaminants that have been found in independent tests paid for by homeowners whose water smelled or looked discolored. There have been several fracking spills at the Beaver Run Reservoir which provides drinking water for tens of thousands of residents, yet IUP students tested only for a few elements.
Would love to get Dr. John’s update on this and get his attention on Ñorth Beaver Township, Pa before it is too late! The area is home to the historic Bessemer Oil Field, which more than once kept the States oil production numbers from declining off previous years records. It is home to over 2500 orphaned and abandon oil and gas wells drilled at the turn of the last century and numerous coal mines. In March of 2014 Hilcorp Energy was fracking 2 miles away in the Utica Shale layer in Poland township, Ohio. They caused 77 earthquakes before ODNR shut them done with a 5 mile ban on fracking because of a previously unknown fault line. Not to be deterred Hilcorp merely stepped acrossthe stateline and continued operations where ODNR has no authority and where PA DEP stands for Dept of Energy Protection or Production, your choice.! This past April Hilcorp once again caused 6 more earthquakes a mere 3 miles from the 2014 frackquakes! How is it that they knew there was gas in the shale but could not detect the fault? Once the fault was detected why isn’t DEP protecting the environment and the citizens of the Commonwealth? There have been 2 major incidences of land subsidence, taking roads and farm fields down into old coal mines, all within a couple of miles of the epicenters of these quakes. Some one, anyone please step up to the plate and help deal with the greed and stupidity pervasive in the area! The Lawrence County Commissioners have turned a deaf ear, appealing to DEP is futile. No one has the right to enrich themselves while poisoning the community! This is not a Boom it is a total BUST!