Will Water Issues Constrain Oil and Gas Production in the United States?

Abstract

The rapid growth in U.S. unconventional oil and gas has made energy more available and affordable globally but brought environmental concerns, especially related to water. We analyzed the water-related sustainability of energy extraction, focusing on: (a) meeting the rapidly rising water demand for hydraulic fracturing (HF) and (b) managing rapidly growing volumes of water co-produced with oil and gas (produced water, PW). We analyzed historical (2009–2017) HF water and PW volumes in ∼73 000 wells and projected future water volumes in major U.S. unconventional oil (semiarid regions) and gas (humid regions) plays. Results show a marked increase in HF water use, and depleting groundwater in some semiarid regions (e.g., by ≤58 ft [18 m]/year in Eagle Ford). PW from oil reservoirs (e.g., Permian) is ∼15× higher than that from gas reservoirs (Marcellus). Water issues related to both HF water demand and PW supplies may be partially mitigated by closing the loop through reuse of PW for HF of new wells. However, projected PW volumes exceed HF water demand in semiarid Bakken (2.1×), Permian Midland (1.3×), and Delaware (3.7×) oil plays, with the Delaware oil play accounting for ∼50% of the projected U.S. oil production. Therefore, water issues could constrain future energy production, particularly in semiarid oil plays.

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“…74 However, PW is not equally distributed among oil plays, and regional variation in the supply and demand for PW within the O&G industry complicates the reuse, recycle, and disposal of PW. 75,76,77 Of PW generated in the United States, 91.5 percent is injected into the subsurface for either enhanced oil recovery or into non-commercial disposal wells, 5.5 percent is discharged to surface water, and 1.3 percent is utilized for beneficial reuse outside of the O&G industry. 78 Water quality also differs spatially and temporally across O&G plays.…”

“…79 The profile of inorganic constituents in PW can vary widely between formations and even between wells within the same formation. 80,81 Of particular note, the TDS or salinity varies tremendously (from approximately 100 to 400,000 mg/L), which has a major impact on potential reuse options. 82 While TDS may limit potential feasible and cost-effective reuse options, other inorganic constituents, like B and heavy metals, may be present in concentrations that are detrimental to plant and soil health and, consequently, may require additional treatment.…”

“…Aerobic biological treatment technologies, including activated sludge and biological membrane processes, are the most common wastewater treatment technologies. 256 However, the efficient and stable operation of conventional wastewater treatment processes can easily be disturbed by water quality fluctuations environmental conditions, and the inclusion of toxic compounds in influents [81]. 257 MBRs, which combine activated sludge treatment and membrane separations, have been identified as an innovative technology for water reclamation because of their superior stability, lower space requirement, and excellent ability to remove various micropollutants.…”

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“…25 Projected water use for hydraulic fracturing and produced water generation over the life of major plays has been estimated in Figure 6 and highlights the growth of water demand for hydraulic fracturing over the life of the field. 28 Source water demand and wastewater generation associated with upstream O&G varies geographically due to the regionality of the hydrocarbon containing geological formations. For example, projected produced water volumes are anticipated to exceed hydraulic fracturing water demand by 2.1 and 3.7 times in the Bakken and Delaware plays, respectively, while the projected produced water volumes are anticipated to fall behind hydraulic fracturing water demand by a factor of 3 to 8.6 in the Eagle Ford play.…”

“…For example, projected produced water volumes are anticipated to exceed hydraulic fracturing water demand by 2.1 and 3.7 times in the Bakken and Delaware plays, respectively, while the projected produced water volumes are anticipated to fall behind hydraulic fracturing water demand by a factor of 3 to 8.6 in the Eagle Ford play. 29 The high-water demand of the O&G industry is an even greater concern for water stressed regions; hence, adoption of nontraditional water sources and reuse within upstream O&G has increased. Roughly 57 percent of the 109,665 wells hydraulically fractured between 2011 and 2016 were located in regions with high or extremely high-water stress.…”