unconventional gas, hydraulic fracturing and … · unconventional gas, hydraulic fracturing and...

UNCONVENTIONAL GAS, HYDRAULIC FRACTURING AND WATERSHEDS

Photo: Gilles WendlingWhitehorse, January 2014

1

OUTLINE

Access to shale gas - basic principles

Groundwater - presence and movement

Wells 100% sealed? Forever?

Surface water and groundwater interaction

Potential effects - cumulative - delayed

2

Hydrofracking Risk Assessment

Executive Summary

7HULS�VM�L_W

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Study concerning the safety and environmental compatibility of

hydrofracking for natural gas production from unconventional reservoirs

C. Ewen, D. Borchardt, S. Richter, R. Hammerbacher

WE ARE NOT ALONE

GERMANY, UK, SOUTH AFRICA

STATE OF THE ART: FRACKING FOR SHALE GAS

EXPLORATION IN SOUTH-AFRICA AND THE IMPACT

ON WATER RESOURCES

Report to the Water Research Commission

by

Prof. G. Steyl1, Prof. G.J. van Tonder2 and Dr. L. Chevallier3

1. University of the Free State, Chemistry Department, Bloemfontein 2. University of the Free State, Institute for Groundwater Studies, Bloemfontein

3. Council for Geoscience, Western Cape branch, Bellville

WRC Report No. KV 294/11

ISBN 978-1-4312-0225-6

February 2012

Feb 2012

3

ECONOMIC WHEN PASSIVE METHOD OF

EXTRACTION

4

19BC Oil and Gas Commission | Montney Formation Play Atlas NEBC | October 2012

Map 14: Montney Formation: Pressure

5

0 30 Km

N

C

C’

BB

BB’

KISKATIN

AW

RIVER WATERSH

ED

LEGEND

Montney pressure

Regional deep cross section

Main Roads

32000

60000

30000

50000

40000

Dawson Creek

6

05698 22002 19817

05691 2321610621

22924

KISKATINAW RIVER WATERSHED

200

0.00

-200

-400

-600

-800

-1000

-1200

-1400

-1600

-1800

-2000

-2200

-2400

-2600

-2800

-3000

400

600

800

1000KISKATINAW RIVER

Cross section BB-BB'

Cross section CC-CC'

10 Km 15 Km 20 Km 25 Km 30 Km 35 Km 40 Km 45 Km 50 Km 55 Km 60 Km 65 Km 70 Km 73 Km

200

0.00

-200

-400

-600

-800

-1000

-1200

-1400

-1600

-1800

-2000

-2200

-2400

-2600

-2800

-3000

400

600

800

1000

0.0 Km 5 Km

Doig1177 m.a.s.l.Doig

1162 m.a.s.l.

Montney1722 m.a.s.l.

Doig1430 m.a.s.l.

Montney1538 m.a.s.l.

Halfway73 m.a.s.l. DUNVEGAN

SHAFTESBURY

FERNIE

KISKATINAW

DEBOLT

KASKAPAU

CHARLIE LAKE

BALDONEL

GOLATA

BELLOY

Cadomin441 m.a.s.l.

DUNVEGAN

SHAFTESBURY

BASE OF FISH SCALES

FERNIEPARDONET

HALFWAY

CHARLIE LAKE

C C'D

epth

m.a

.s.l.

Ground Profile

East West

Piezometric levelHalfway (m.a.s.l.)

Piezometric levelBaldonnel (m.a.s.l.)

Piezometric levelPaddy Mbr part of PeaceRiver fm (m.a.s.l.)

???

MONTNEY

DOIG

MONTNEY

DOIG

PEACE RIVER

SPIRIT RIVER

BLUESKYGETHING

CADOMIN

NIKANASSIN

BALDONEL

GETHING

BLUESKY

SPIRIT RIVER

PEACE RIVER

CADOMINNIKANASSIN

Piezometric levelCadotte Mbr part ofPeace River (m.a.s.l.)

Water plays

Gas playsGas andwater plays

Legend

09733 OGC WellAuthority Number

OGC WellStratigraphicformation

Pressure of water(m of water)

Pressure of gas(m of water)

Pressure gas andwater (m of water)

Note:Piezometric lines for the differentformations were drawn using datafrom the Montney aquifercharacterization project (2011)

7

IDENTIFICATION OF PLAY AND

MAKING THAT PLAY AS PERMEABLE AS POSSIBLE

8

05698 22002 19817

05691 2321610621

22924

KISKATINAW RIVER WATERSHED

200

0.00

-200

-400

-600

-800

-1000

-1200

-1400

-1600

-1800

-2000

-2200

-2400

-2600

-2800

-3000

400

600

800

1000KISKATINAW RIVER

Cross section BB-BB'

Cross section CC-CC'

10 Km 15 Km 20 Km 25 Km 30 Km 35 Km 40 Km 45 Km 50 Km 55 Km 60 Km 65 Km 70 Km 73 Km

200

0.00

-200

-400

-600

-800

-1000

-1200

-1400

-1600

-1800

-2000

-2200

-2400

-2600

-2800

-3000

400

600

800

1000

0.0 Km 5 Km

Doig1177 m.a.s.l.Doig

1162 m.a.s.l.

Montney1722 m.a.s.l.

Doig1430 m.a.s.l.

Montney1538 m.a.s.l.

Halfway73 m.a.s.l. DUNVEGAN

SHAFTESBURY

FERNIE

KISKATINAW

DEBOLT

KASKAPAU

CHARLIE LAKE

BALDONEL

GOLATA

BELLOY

Cadomin441 m.a.s.l.

DUNVEGAN

SHAFTESBURY

BASE OF FISH SCALES

FERNIEPARDONET

HALFWAY

CHARLIE LAKE

C C'D

epth

m.a

.s.l.

Ground Profile

East West

Piezometric levelHalfway (m.a.s.l.)

Piezometric levelBaldonnel (m.a.s.l.)

Piezometric levelPaddy Mbr part of PeaceRiver fm (m.a.s.l.)

???

MONTNEY

DOIG

MONTNEY

DOIG

PEACE RIVER

SPIRIT RIVER

BLUESKYGETHING

CADOMIN

NIKANASSIN

BALDONEL

GETHING

BLUESKY

SPIRIT RIVER

PEACE RIVER

CADOMINNIKANASSIN

Piezometric levelCadotte Mbr part ofPeace River (m.a.s.l.)

Water plays

Gas playsGas andwater plays

Legend

09733 OGC WellAuthority Number

OGC WellStratigraphicformation

Pressure of water(m of water)

Pressure of gas(m of water)

Pressure gas andwater (m of water)

Note:Piezometric lines for the differentformations were drawn using datafrom the Montney aquifercharacterization project (2011)

9

Source: USGS10

11

HYDROGEOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES

12

Aquifer 1

Aquifer 2

Aquifer 3

Target Zone

Piezometric levels

Spring

River

Groundwater flow

Not to scale

Poor quality seal or absence of seal

Deep Well

Good seal

Wetland

13

aquifer 1

aquifer 2

aquifer 3

aquitard

aquitard

aquitard

14

aquifer 1

aquifer 2

aquifer 3

aquitard

aquitard

water table of aquifer 1

water table of aquifer 3

15

DRILLING AND SEALING

REGULATIONS TO MAKE IT SAFE

16

Model of a well casing after the cement has been poured.

German Hydrofracking Risk Assessment 2013

17

REGULATIONS TO MAKE IT SAFE

BUT...

18

Source: Alberta Energy Utilities Board19

20

Well Integrity and Long-Term Well Performance Assessment

(Insights from work on CO2 Sequestration)

Bill Carey

Earth & Environmental Sciences Division Los Alamos National Laboratory

Los Alamos, NM USA

EPA April 2013 Workshop21

How Is Wellbore Integrity Achieved? • Operational measures

– Adequate weight drilling mud

– Monitoring pressure for gas intrusion (“gas kick”)

– Blowout preventers • Design measures

– Steel – Portland cement

• Guidelines: API HF1 (hydraulic fracturing),

www.theoildrum.com

Production design

Abandonment

Bill Carey - EPA April 2013 Workshop22

Why do wells leak? • Formation damage during drilling (caving) • Casing centralization (incomplete cementing) • Adequate drilling mud removal • Incomplete cement placement (pockets) • Inadequate cement-formation, cement-casing

bond • Insufficient cement coverage of well length • Cement shrinkage • Contamination of cement by mud or formation

fluids

• Mechanical or thermal stress/strain – Formation of micro-annulus at casing-cement

interface – disruption of cement-formation bond – Fracture formation within cement

• Geochemical attack – Corrosion of steel casing – Degradation of Portland cement

– Carbonation – Hydrogen sulfide – Sulfate attack – Acid attack

Pre- Production

Post-Production

State of Alaska Oil and Gas Division

Bill Carey - EPA April 2013 Workshop23

Wis Historical Record, and Rate Analys

ellbore Integrity: Failure Mechanisms,

Anthony Ingraffea, PhD, PE

Cornell University Physicians, Scientists, and Engineers for Healthy Energy (PSE)

Renee Santoro

Physicians, Scientists, and Engineers for Healthy Energy (PSE)

Seth B. Shonkoff, PhD, MPH Physicians, Scientists, and Engineers for Healthy Energy (PSE)

University of California, Berkeley

1 Ingraffea et al., EPA April 2013 Workshop24

y-RepstrIndu f olls

orted Data On LossWellbore Integrity: Offshore We

Brufatto et al., Oilfield Review, Schlumberger, Autumn, 2003

SCP=Sustained Casing Pressure. Also called sustained annular pressure, in one or more of the casing annuli.

3

• About 5% of wells fail soon • More fail with age • Most fail by maturity

Ingraffea et al., EPA April 2013 Workshop

25

Marcellus Play: Results of Survey

Recent Operator Performance in the Pennsylvania

11

1,609 wells drilled in 2010. 97 well failures.

6% rate of failure.

1,972 wells drilled in 2011.

140 well failures. 7.1% rate of failure.

1,346 wells drilled in 2012

120 well failures. 8.9% rate of failure.

Consistent with previous industry

data, and not improving.

Ingraffea et al., EPA April 2013 Workshop(GWS note: well failure = leaky well )26

!

MEASURES IN PLACE..BUT THINGS CAN GO WRONG

“Ten casing failures occurred at the enhanced heavy oil recovery operations in northeast Alberta, resulting in cross flow from the producing zone into another formation.” Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB),”Field Surveillance and Operations Branch Provincial Summary 2009” (2010)

GW Solutions report for Minnie Lake Conservation Society, Feb 2011

27

Modeling of Leakage in Potential Failure Scenarios in Shale Gas Systems

Matt Freeman, LBNL

Technical Workshop Series: Well Construction/Operation and Subsurface Modeling

EPA-Research Triangle Park • April 17, 2013

Freeman - EPA April 2013 Workshop

28

Conceptual Model Building: Scenarios: Fault/Fractures Pathway

5

Annotated view of the various zones of the simulated system. Colors denote different material types.

Freeman - EPA April 2013 Workshop29

Work in progress - More studies required

EPA report release scheduled in 2014

GENERAL CONCLUSIONS(2013 WORK)

30

100% OF WELLS ARE SEALED

FOREVER

???

31

WHY IS THIS SO IMPORTANT?

32

High river level

Low river level

Aquifers provide flow and temperature control!

33

05698 22002 19817

05691 2321610621

22924

KISKATINAW RIVER WATERSHED

200

0.00

-200

-400

-600

-800

-1000

-1200

-1400

-1600

-1800

-2000

-2200

-2400

-2600

-2800

-3000

400

600

800

1000KISKATINAW RIVER

Cross section BB-BB'

Cross section CC-CC'

10 Km 15 Km 20 Km 25 Km 30 Km 35 Km 40 Km 45 Km 50 Km 55 Km 60 Km 65 Km 70 Km 73 Km

200

0.00

-200

-400

-600

-800

-1000

-1200

-1400

-1600

-1800

-2000

-2200

-2400

-2600

-2800

-3000

400

600

800

1000

0.0 Km 5 Km

Doig1177 m.a.s.l.Doig

1162 m.a.s.l.

Montney1722 m.a.s.l.

Doig1430 m.a.s.l.

Montney1538 m.a.s.l.

Halfway73 m.a.s.l. DUNVEGAN

SHAFTESBURY

FERNIE

KISKATINAW

DEBOLT

KASKAPAU

CHARLIE LAKE

BALDONEL

GOLATA

BELLOY

Cadomin441 m.a.s.l.

DUNVEGAN

SHAFTESBURY

BASE OF FISH SCALES

FERNIEPARDONET

HALFWAY

CHARLIE LAKE

C C'D

epth

m.a

.s.l.

Ground Profile

East West

Piezometric levelHalfway (m.a.s.l.)

Piezometric levelBaldonnel (m.a.s.l.)

Piezometric levelPaddy Mbr part of PeaceRiver fm (m.a.s.l.)

???

MONTNEY

DOIG

MONTNEY

DOIG

PEACE RIVER

SPIRIT RIVER

BLUESKYGETHING

CADOMIN

NIKANASSIN

BALDONEL

GETHING

BLUESKY

SPIRIT RIVER

PEACE RIVER

CADOMINNIKANASSIN

Piezometric levelCadotte Mbr part ofPeace River (m.a.s.l.)

Water plays

Gas playsGas andwater plays

Legend

09733 OGC WellAuthority Number

OGC WellStratigraphicformation

Pressure of water(m of water)

Pressure of gas(m of water)

Pressure gas andwater (m of water)

Note:Piezometric lines for the differentformations were drawn using datafrom the Montney aquifercharacterization project (2011)

34

Cadotte (g+w)

500 m-bgl

35

fracked zone

network of natural fractures

(permeability increased resulting from fracking + drop of piezometric levels resulting from years of gas extraction + interconnection between aquifers)

Surficial aquifer

What is the potential flow along all these pathways?

What will be the resulting drop of piezometric level in

the surficial aquifer?

Wells, 10-20% of them poorly sealed

36

Modeled drawdown range: 0.6 m to 0.9 m after 3 to 5 years

Effects:

permanent and irreversible

could be devastating for watersheds and their ecosystems

Debate needed with more modeling results from academia and industry

37

NATURAL PATHWAYS(SHOWN BY HOT SPRINGS)

38

Estimated recharge zone

Estimated area of potential pathways

Liard Hot Springs

39

0

1 km

-1 km

-2 km

-3 km

50oC

100oC

Shale - low thermal conductivity

Possible Flow Paths Geochemistrytemp. max.: 120 °Capprox. depth: 3.4 km

• (Grasby and al. 2001)1

1

Limestone - high thermal conductivity

Liard Hot Springs

40

Hotsprings and Shale Gas Plays

Kandik

Old Crow

Eagle Plain

Peel Plateau and Plain

Bonnet Plume

Whitehorse Trough

Liard Basin

Beaufort Mackenzie

41

Whitehorse Trough

Liard Basin

Hotsprings, Faults and Shale Gas Plays

42

Whitehorse Trough

Hotsprings, Faults and Shale Gas Plays

43

WHAT IS BEING MONITORED IN THE YUKON?

44

Approximately 50 locations

Surface Water

45

7 groundwater monitoring stations

46

Eagle River

Dalglish Creek

McParlon Creek

Glacier Creek

Eagle Plain Basin

• New water monitoring sites added in August 2013:

• McParlon Creek • Dalglish Creek • Glacier Creek

• To be added this fiscal: • Eagle River

Water Monitoring Network

Presentation to the Select Committee on Hydraulic Fracturing

September 26, 2013 9:00 am

47

WHAT WE SHOULD KNOW

48

WHAT IS COMING?

(I.E. FULL BUILT-OUT PLAN)

49

map with all wellsText

Dawson  Creek

Fort  St  John

NE BCover 31 000 O&G Wells

(source: National Energy Board)

50

> 4000 wells in FNFN

51

Disposal wellDrilling pad Dugouts

Drinking Water Well

Creek

Conceptual image of groundwater dynamic and connection to surface water

Shallow sand aquifer

Deeper sand aquifer

52

0 km 5 km 10 km 15 km 20 km

m-asl

0

1000

-1000

-2000-1000

0-1000

0

-1000

0

-1000

0

-2000

1000

gas-bearing plays

water-bearing plays

Peace River (g+w)

Spirit River (g+w)

Bluesky (g+w)Gething (g+w)Cadomin (g+w)Nikanassin (g+w)

Baldonnel (w)

Halfway (g+w)Doig (g)

Montney (g)

?

gas and water-bearing plays

-2000

-2000

-2000

Montney (g)

2060 m-agl

Doig (g)

650 m-agl Halfway (g+w)

190 m-agl

Cadomin (g+w)

20 m-bgl

Gething (g+w)

600 m-bgl

Bluesky (g+w)

10 m-agl

Falher A (g+w)

580 m-bgl

Cadotte (g+w)

490 m-bgl

formation pressure m hydraulic head

highest recorded

lowest recorded

193 m-agl

Head in BaldonnelHead in Cadotte

Head in Halfway

53

0 km 5 km 10 km 15 km 20 km

m-asl

0

1000

-1000

-2000-1000

0

0

-1000

0

-2000

1000

-3000

-4000

-3000

-3000

-3000

-2000

-1000

0

-4000-3000

-2000

-2000

-1000

54

OTHER COMMENTSTAKE HOME MESSAGES

55

EFFECTS COULD TAKE TIME TO BE OBSERVED: YEARS, DECADES

56

CUMULATIVE EFFECT

57

O&G WELLS IN WESTERN CANADA

385 000 in Alberta

113 000 in Saskatchewan

31 000 in BC

8 000 in Manitoba

Over 0.5 million wells!!!

58

Permafrost

warm gases

59

VERY SENSITIVE ENVIRONMENT

60

100% OF WELLS ARE SEALED

FOREVER

ARE WE SURE ???

61

WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO WATER

IF IT IS NOT THE CASE ?

62

T H A N K Y O UPhoto: Gilles Wendling

63