Where Are All the Fracking Accidents?

A Yale University Energy Study Group has done a cost-benefit analysis of shale gas extraction and has determined that at current levels, the extraction of shale gas has generated a consumer surplus of slightly more then $100 billion for the American economy:

Gas production in 2008 was 25.6 tcf so that the surplus to consumers by the price reduction from shale gas equaled $102.9 billion.... [It] is startling to acknowledge that consumer benefits from the technology of shale gas drilling and new gas production can be expected to exceed $100 billion per year, year in and year out as long as present production rates are maintained.

Yet the whole point of the analysis is to weigh the benefits of the new and cheaper fuel source against the costs of extraction, especially the potential environmental accidents that can occur.


To determine how significant the environmental costs were, the authors used an EPA report to determine the scale of accidents associated with shale extraction, with a focus on incidents of groundwater contamination. The number of times this happened was surprisingly few:

To undertake such an assessment of costs, we have reviewed current studies and reports on accidents, misuse of technology and poor well design and installation. A 2011 report for the Secretary of Energy (“Deutch Report”) counted 19 instances of problems with frackwater over the previous few years, amid thousands of wells drilled.

Since the paper claimed there were only 19 reported instances of problems with frackwater contamination I had to read the original EPA report to determine where this number came from. The EPA report itself does not give a number, instead stating that opponents of fracking tend to lack a lot of solid cases to point to:

Advocates state that fracturing has been performed safety without significant incident for over 60 years, although modern shale gas fracturing of two mile long laterals has only been done for something less than a decade. Opponents point to failures and accidents and other environmental impacts, but these incidents are typically unrelated to hydraulic fracturing per se and sometimes lack supporting data about the relationship of shale gas development to incidence and consequences.

 There are hundreds of thousands of shale gas wells across America, and while there are many horror stories in the media, it seems there are surprisingly few documented and confirmed cases of accidents occurring, especially with contaminated water.

Read more here.