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Water Use for Hydraulic Fracturing of Oil and Gas in the South Platte River Basin, Colorado
Author(s) -
Walker Ella L.,
Anderson Aspen M.,
Read Laura K.,
Hogue Terri S.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
jawra journal of the american water resources association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.957
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1752-1688
pISSN - 1093-474X
DOI - 10.1111/1752-1688.12539
Subject(s) - hydraulic fracturing , structural basin , environmental science , hydrology (agriculture) , produced water , unconventional oil , drainage basin , water resources , fossil fuel , oil shale , geology , petroleum engineering , environmental engineering , geography , geotechnical engineering , geomorphology , waste management , paleontology , ecology , cartography , engineering , biology
Water use for oil and gas development ( i.e ., hydraulic fracturing) is a concern in semiarid basins where water supply is often stressed to meet demands, and oil and gas production can exacerbate the situation. Understanding the impacts of water use for hydraulic fracturing ( HF ) on water availability in semiarid regions is critical for management and regulatory decisions. In the current work, we quantify water use for HF at several scales — from municipal to state‐wide — using the IHS Enerdeq database for the South Platte Basin. In addition, we estimate produced water (a by‐product of oil and gas production), using data from the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to explore reuse scenarios. The South Platte River Basin, located in northeastern Colorado, encompasses the Denver‐Metro area. The basin has one of the most productive oil and gas shale formations in Colorado, with much of the production occurring in Weld County. The basin has experienced higher horizontal drilling rates coupled with an increasing population. Results show water use for horizontal and vertical wells averages 11,000 and 1,000 m 3 , respectively. Water use for HF in the South Platte Basin totaled 0.63% of the basin's 2014 total water demand. For Weld County, water use for HF was 2.4% of total demand, and for the city of Greeley, water use was 7% of total demand. Produced water totaled 9.4 Mm 3 in the basin for 2014, which represents 42% of the total water used for HF .