SNAPP: Impacts of hydraulic fracturing on water quantity and quality for nature and people: Are we prepared for the future?
Principal Investigators:
Sharon Baruch-Mordo, Joseph E. Fargione, Joseph M. Kiesecker, Joseph N Ryan, and Anne M. Trainor
Hydrologic fracturing of shale resources threatens both water quality and quantity and current regulations are highly variable but generally inadequate. Public concerns over potential impacts are high, leading to interest by policymakers and regulators for science-based recommendations. However current knowledge gaps limit implementation of sound policy to avoid and mitigate impacts to surface and ground water. We propose a SNAP working group that will synthesis data and regulations to: 1) project water demand based on development scenarios and... more
Hydrologic fracturing of shale resources threatens both water quality and quantity and current regulations are highly variable but generally inadequate. Public concerns over potential impacts are high, leading to interest by policymakers and regulators for science-based recommendations. However current knowledge gaps limit implementation of sound policy to avoid and mitigate impacts to surface and ground water. We propose a SNAP working group that will synthesis data and regulations to: 1) project water demand based on development scenarios and identify watersheds with potential for water quantity conflicts and the restrictions required to avoid such conflicts; 2) evaluate spatial pattern of chemical use and identify risks and knowledge gaps; 3) simulate contamination events and proposed mitigation responses to quantify impacts on environment and people and identify policies needed to mitigate risk; and 4) communicate results and policy recommendations to stakeholders through meetings, a policy white paper, peer reviewed publications, and web-based products. Because many state governments in the USA as well as various countries (i.e., Argentina, Australia, and China) are in the process of creating or revising regulations to address the recent boom in shale gas development, a unique opportunity exists to work with stakeholders and implement working group results into policy formation.
collapse
Participants and Meetings

Working Group Participants
Activity | Dates | Further Information |
---|---|---|
Working Group | 12th—14th May 2014 | Participant List |
Working Group | 15th—17th October 2014 | Participant List |
Working Group | 4th—6th March 2015 | Participant List |
Working Group | 7th—9th July 2015 | Participant List |
Participant Contact Information
Maria Alejandrina Alvarez | malvarez@TNC.ORG | The Nature Conservancy Argentina |
Ann Arnold | AArnold@ogb.state.al.us | State Oil and Gas Board of Alabama |
Sharon Baruch-Mordo | sbaruch-mordo@tnc.org | The Nature Conservancy |
Sally Entrekin | sentrekin@uca.edu | University of Central Arkansas |
Joseph E. Fargione | jfargione@tnc.org | The Nature Conservancy |
Martin Funes | mfunes@wcs.org | Wildlife Conservation Society Argentina |
Paul Jehn | pauljehn@gmail.com | Ground Water Protection Council |
Brigid Kenney | brigid.kenney@maryland.gov | Maryland Department of the Environment |
Joseph M. Kiesecker | jkiesecker@tnc.org | The Nature Conservancy |
Kate Konschnik | kkonschnik@law.harvard.edu | Harvard University |
Nathan Kuhnert | Nathan.Kuhnert@dvn.com | Devon Energy |
Kelly O Maloney | kmaloney@usgs.gov | US Geological Survey (USGS) |
Jean Philippe Nicot | jp.nicot@beg.utexas.edu | University of Texas |
Lauren Patterson | lauren.patterson@duke.edu | Duke University |
Robert Puls | puls.robert@gmail.com | University of Oklahoma |
Joseph N Ryan | joseph.ryan@colorado.edu | University of Colorado |
James Saiers | james.saiers@yale.edu | Yale University |
Jim Tolisano | jtolisano@gmail.com | Wildlife Conservation Society |
Anne M. Trainor | anne.trainor@tnc.org | Yale University |
Avner Vengosh | vengosh@duke.edu | Duke University |
Hannah Wiseman | hwiseman@fsu.edu | Florida State University |
Dan Yates | dyates@gwpc.org | Ground Water Protection Council |
Justine Hausheer | justine.hausheer@tnc.org | The Nature Conservancy |
Evonne Tang | etang@nas.edu | National Academy of Sciences (NAS) |
Products: Publications, Reports, Datasets, Presentations, Visualizations
Type | Products of NCEAS Research |
---|---|
Presentations | Maloney, Kelly O; Patterson, Lauren; Fargione, Joseph E.; Nicot, Jean Philippe. 2016. Shale oil and gas and surface waters: identifying potential contamination pathways through evaluation of state notice of violation and spill reports. Association of Mid-Atlantic Aquatic Biologists Annual Meeting; Berkeley Springs; WV; 2016. |
Presentations | Maloney, Kelly O; Patterson, Lauren; Fargione, Joseph E.; Nicot, Jean Philippe. 2016. Spills and high volume hydraulic fracturing – an analysis of state data from Colorado, North Dakota, New Mexico, and Pennsylvania. Penn State University Shale Network Workshop; State College, PA; 2016. |
Journal Article | Maloney, Kelly O; Baruch-Mordo, Sharon; Patterson, Lauren; Nicot, Jean Philippe; Entrekin, Sally; Fargione, Joseph E.; Kiesecker, Joseph M.; Konschnik, Kate; Ryan, Joseph N. 2017. Unconventional oil and gas spills: Materials, volumes, and risks to surface waters in four states of the U.S.. Science of the Total Environment. (Abstract) |
Journal Article | Oakleaf, Jim; Kennedy, Christina M.; Baruch-Mordo, Sharon; West, Paul; Gerber, James S.; Jarvis, Larissa; Kiesecker, Joseph M. 2015. A world at risk: Aggregating development trends to forecast global habitat conversion. PLoS ONE. (Abstract) |
Data Set | Patterson, Lauren. 2016. Unconventional oil and gas spills: Risks, mitigation priorities and state reporting requirements. KNB. (Abstract) (Online version) |
Journal Article | Patterson, Lauren; Konschnik, Kate; Wiseman, Hannah; Fargione, Joseph E.; Maloney, Kelly O; Kiesecker, Joseph M.; Nicot, Jean Philippe; Baruch-Mordo, Sharon; Entrekin, Sally; Trainor, Anne M.; Saiers, James. 2017. Unconventional oil and gas spills: Risks, mitigation priorities, and state reporting requirements. Environmental Science & Technology. (Abstract) |
Data Set | Patterson, Lauren; Konschnik, Kate; Wiseman, Hannah; Fargione, Joseph E.; Maloney, Kelly O. 2017. Unconventional oil and gas spills: Risks, mitigation priorities and state reporting requirements (raw data). KNB. (Abstract) |
"SNAPP: Impacts of hydraulic fracturing on water quantity and quality for nature and people: Are we prepared for the future?" is project ID: 12685