A new report reveals that the concern that hydraulic
fracturing of shale formations to remove natural gas is contaminating
groundwater is overstated. Fracking has been hailed as an energy game-changer,
a drilling technique that can release vast new reserves of natural gas. The
claims were made at the once a year AAAS conference in Vancouver, Canada.
Fracking, though, has become highly controversial, with
claims that the pressurized fluids can find their way into water courses and
drinking supplies, and also trigger small earthquakes. The Energy Institute
team did not look at all of these issues in detail, preferring in the first
instance to concentrate on the groundwater contamination reports. According to
Dr. Groat, far more research on hydraulic fracturing was desired, and his
Energy Institute planned now to take a closer look at the other concerns such
as any increased earthquake risk.
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