University of Texas, 2012 A 2012 University of Texas at Austin Energy Institute study (which was later withdrawn) found that all steps in the process except the actual injection of the fluid (which proponents artificially separated from the rest of the process and designated hydraulic fracturing) have resulted in environmental contamination. The radioactivity of the injected fluid itself was not assessed in the University of Texas study. The other stages or phases of the shale gas development life cycle[6] are (1) drill pad construction and operation, (2) the construction, integrity, and performance of the wellbores, (3) the flowback of the fluid back towards the surface, (4) blowouts and spills, (5) integrity of other pipelines involved and (6) the disposal of the flowback, including waste water and other waste products.[97][98] These stages were all reported to be possible sources of contamination in the University of Texas study. The study concluded that if hydraulic fracturing is to be conducted in an environmentally safe manner, these issues need to be addressed first.[6] There are extensive links between UT and the oil and gas industry, with giving Royal Dutch Shell to the university currently standing at more than $24.8 million, $4m alone having been handed over for 2012.[99][100] Since 2011, Shell has partnered Texas in a program called Shell-UT Unconventional Research, and the university has a similar research program in place with Exxon Mobil.[101] Halliburton, the largest supplier of fracking services in the United States, has also given millions of dollars to the university.[102] Statoil announced a $5m research agreement (part of which will focus on oil shale) with UTs Bureau of Economic Geology in September 2011, whose program director, Ian Duncan, was the senior contributor for the parts of the Texas study to do with the environmental impacts of shale gas development.[6][33][103]
Posted on: Wed, 15 Oct 2014 09:06:07 +0000
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