Dirty water and pipes

Dear Editor:

We may never know what chemicals are added to the water used in fracking. Some things we do know:

The average well will require from 1.2 million to 3.5 million U.S. gallons of water to develop; once the well starts to produce gas the water must be removed. From what has been written, “large storage tanks” will be brought in to store the wastewater.

In turn, that wastewater will be removed by truck, with each truck holding approximately 8,500 U.S. gallons. That is a lot of truck traffic, even after the well is developed. Few wastewater treatment plants are able to deal with the wastewater. This increases the possibility of a major spill due to an accident.

Where will the wastewater be transported to? In state or out of state?

Many wells are refractured over their lifetime, requiring even more water and truck traffic. Will the large storage tanks remain in place for future use? And if so, for how long?

Of serious consideration is: How does the gas get to market? Only by a pipeline. What will be the environmental impact by building such?

What provisions are in place to ensure that once the well is dry and capped, the surrounding area will be returned to as close as possible to a natural state? There must be funds set aside for future use to reclaim the well site.

There are just too many unanswered questions for the well to be developed. The Bureau of Land Management should not extend the lease to SG Interests.

Harry Temple III

Snowmass Village