MOSCOW, May 28 (RIA Novosti) – Oil companies drilling in California are not rushing to obey a recent state law requiring authorities notify residents about fracking in their area, as health and safety concerns mount about the increasingly common drilling technology.
An NBC investigative team found that dozens of wells implementing hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a mining technology that involves high-pressure water and chemicals injection into hard-rock formations to create fractures through which oil and gas can be pumped, have not been reported as the law requires.
Under Senate Bill Four (or SB4), which went into effect on January 1, all fracking well operators are obliged to post information about the well stimulation treatment, including water quality data, on a special website within 60 days.
So far, the website of California’s Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR), has 39 registered oil wells out of 116. The Center for Biological Diversity and NBC Bay Area found 62 separate wells with proven acid use, but with no record on the website.
State officials deny the controlling division is violating the new law. California Department of Conservation Chief Deputy Director Jason Marshall told NBC the department had 15 additional days after fracking wells have been reported to post the information on the website.
"We are working diligently. As the operators are reporting the stuff on Frac Focus, we’re working diligently with them to get that additional information, so then that we can link that up so we can post it on our site," he said.
Fracking originated in Kansas in 1947. California has used fracking for more than 30 years with no reported damage to the environment, according to the state's oil and gas division.
As the alternative oil and gas drilling technology gains momentum globally, the number of patent applications related to hydraulic fracturing rose 28 percent last year with a total of 706 applications, according to research released by Reuters on Tuesday. The United States and China accounted for three quarters of the total patents.
The extraction of shale gas through fracking contributes to lower energy prices and increases overall energy use, according to recent studies. The use of shale gas also encourages substitution away from sources such as coal, nuclear, renewables, and electricity, which can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The technology’s benefits are controversial, however, since the process involves injecting liquids with carcinogenic chemicals, which stay in the ground and can pollute soil and groundwater. The water used in extraction can later be treated, but its subsequent safety has not been proven.
