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Fracking blowout indicates communication between zones

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There were two fracking blowouts today.

When they are fracking one well and the oil blows out of another well it’s means there was communication out of the zone. That seems to be what happened in the blowout in Canada today.

Hydraulic fracturing fingered in oil well blowout
Oil sprayed on farmer’s land near Innisfail

“We don’t know the details yet … but my understanding is that it appears the fracturing process affected the other well,” said board spokeswoman Cara Tobin, Monday.

The incident could have repercussions around North America as the industry grapples with rising public discontent over rapidly increasing use of the technology to unlock shale gas and oil reserves.

Communication between zones happened in the area where Tim and Christine Ruggiero lived. That’s one reason the EPA picked that area to study.

Don Bester, president of the Alberta Surface Rights Group, is worried the accelerated rate of multi-staged hydraulic fracturing in Alberta could eventually affect water resources underground.

“We’re concerned that these things are going to start damaging aquifers,” said Bester, a retired petroleum engineer. “If they can hit another well, like this one here, what if they communicate and put all that frac fluid into an aquifer and destroy it.”
…

“Fracks propagate out so far that if they hit one of these natural fracture systems, they will just follow that natural channel straight up from a high pressure zone to a low pressure zone,” Bester said.

There was also an off shore blowout on the coast of Nigeria. More hydrocarbons in the ocean.

About Sharon Wilson

Sharon Wilson is considered a leading citizen expert on the impacts of shale oil and gas extraction. She is the go-to person whether it’s top EPA officials from D.C., national and international news networks, or residents facing the shock of eminent domain and the devastating environmental effects of natural gas development in their backyards.

Comments

  2. kim Feil says

    Speaking of communication of wells,…. The Pantego TX Carrizo older well had to be pumped/cleaned out when it took on produced water when they were bringing on the new wells.

  3. Deb Lambert says

    They are drilling blind. I told Chesapeake Reps about abandoned wells around me and they just blew it off. One contact could ruin do many private water wells and farm land. Then they will just close up their company and start with one with a new name. What is up with Chesapeake and all the companies anyway? I know. Spread liability.

  4. Nick says

    Without having any facts, I would suspect the well that was being frac’d was completing in the same formation that the offset well was producing from. This happens in areas of old production. When a new well is pressured up during completion, that pressure moves through the same formation to areas of lower pressure which can be the next producer. We operate wells next to new horizontal completions & when we see indication of the frac from the new completion in our well, we put on a bigger pump because they are pushing oil & gas toward us & we will produce it as fast as we can while it lasts.

  5. Mike H. says

    If the weakest point in a well be fractured is communicating with another well, what’s to stop it?

    • Nick says

      From the article, it says the well that “spewed oil” was not a plugged well. It is a producer & I assume producing from the same formation that was frac’d in the offset.

      To answer MIke H. ..No company wants to pump fluid or even pressure contact offset producers. This indicates that both “straws” (wells) are sucking from the same “cup” (reservoir) and produced volumes will be less than what they had hoped from the new well completion because the old well is already in “contact” with the reserves.

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