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Fracking impacts on water quality

Water concerns associated with general natural gas and shale gas extraction, including hydraulic fracturing, are already well known. These can include:

• Stress on surface water and ground water supplies from the withdrawal of large volumes of water used in drilling and hydraulic fracturing. Each time a well is fractured it requires massive amounts of water. It is estimated that the average well will use 5.6 million gallons per frack. If you figure an average family of 4 uses about 300 gallons of water per day, the water used in one fracture would supply one household with water for 51 years.
• Possible contamination of underground sources of drinking water and surface waters resulting from spills, faulty well construction, or by other means. To learn about the case of drinking water contamination in Dimock, PA, visit the U.S. EPA′s website.
• Adverse impacts from discharges into surface waters or from disposal into underground injection wells.




Hydraulic fracking 101: https://www.earthworksaction.org/issues/hydraulic_fracturing_101


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