Increased Oversight of Hydraulic Fracturing Operations Needed to Protect Water Resources

On July 16, 2015, the Office of Inspector General of the Environmental Protection Agency released the report Protecting America’s Waters: Enhanced EPA Oversight and Action Can Further Protect Water Resources from the Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing. The report evaluated how the EPA and states use existing authorities to regulate […]

The Food Sector and Global Water Risks

In May, Ceres issued the report Feeding Ourselves Thirsty: How the Food Sector is Managing Global Water Risks, which addresses the challenges faced by the food industry from growing threats of water scarcity and pollution. The food sector uses approximately 70% of the world’s freshwater resources. Competition, climate change, aging […]

Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing Chemicals on Drinking Water

On June 4, 2015, EPA issued the Draft Assessment of the Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing for Oil and Gas on Drinking Water Resources. The Report is open for public comment and peer review. Since its release, EPA also released a supporting draft database that contains information on the 1,173 […]

Hydraulic Fracturing Water Consumption and Disposal: A look back at the Barnett Shale

The team at UT’s Bureau of Economic Geology (http://www.beg.utexas.edu/) recently released a new report on water usage and disposal in the Barnett Shale. To date, the Barnett has more than 17,000 wells completed according to the Texas RRC. Barnett Shale Well Count 1993-2013.pdf As an earlier play, the Barnett gives […]

A Review of Shale Gas Regulations by State

Experts in RFF’s Center for Energy Economics and Policy analyzed 25 regulatory elements related to shale gas development in 31 states that have actual or potential development activity, offering the most comprehensive review of state shale gas regulations to date. This analysis is presented in a new RFF report, The […]

Peak Water in the American West

by Peter Gleick on August 19, 2013 It is no surprise, of course, that the western United States is dry. The entire history of the West can be told (and has been, in great books like Cadillac Desert [Reisner] and Rivers of Empire [Worster] and The Great Thirst [Hundley]) in […]

Hydraulic Fracturing & Water Stress: Growing Competitive Pressures for Water

This Ceres research paper analyzes water use in hydraulic fracturing operations across the United States and the extent to which this activity is taking place in water stressed regions. It provides an overview of efforts underway, such as the use of recycled water and nonfreshwater resources, to mitigate these impacts […]