title: Water Use and Management in the Bakken Shale Oil Play in North Dakota.
abstract: Oil and natural gas development in the Bakken shale play of North Dakota has grown substantially since 2008. This study provides a comprehensive overview and analysis of water quantity and management impacts from this development by (1) estimating water demand for hydraulic fracturing in the Bakken from 2008 to 2012; (2) compiling volume estimates for maintenance water, or brine dilution water; (3) calculating water intensities normalized by the amount of oil produced, or estimated ultimate recovery (EUR); (4) estimating domestic water demand associated with the large oil services population; (5) analyzing the change in wastewater volumes from 2005 to 2012; and (6) examining existing water sources used to meet demand. Water use for hydraulic fracturing in the North Dakota Bakken grew 5-fold from 770 million gallons in 2008 to 4.3 billion gallons in 2012. First-year wastewater volumes grew in parallel, from an annual average of 1,135,000 gallons per well in 2008 to 2,905,000 gallons in 2012, exceeding the mean volume of water used in hydraulic fracturing and surpassing typical 4-year wastewater totals for the Barnett, Denver, and Marcellus basins. Surprisingly, domestic water demand from the temporary oilfield services population in the region may be comparable to the regional water demand from hydraulic fracturing activities. Existing groundwater resources are inadequate to meet the demand for hydraulic fracturing, but there appear to be adequate surface water resources, provided that access is available.
authors: ORISE Fellow at U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 Independence Ave SW, Washington, D.C. 20585, United States ;
authors: R M
authors: RM
authors: Horner
authors: Environmental Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, 955 L'Enfant Plaza SW, Suite 6000, Washington, D.C. 20024, United States.
authors: C B
authors: CB
authors: Harto
authors: School of Earth, Energy, and Environmental Sciences, Woods Institute for the Environment, and Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford University , Stanford, California 94305, United States.
authors: R B
authors: RB
authors: Jackson
authors: School of Earth, Energy, and Environmental Sciences, Stanford University , Stanford, California 94305, United States.
authors: E R
authors: ER
authors: Lowry
authors: School of Earth, Energy, and Environmental Sciences and Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford University , Stanford, California 94305, United States.
authors: A R
authors: AR
authors: Brandt
authors: School of Earth, Energy, and Environmental Sciences, Stanford University , Stanford, California 94305, United States.
authors: T W
authors: TW
authors: Yeskoo
authors: Saint Lawrence University , 23 Romoda Drive, Canton, New York 13617, United States.
authors: D J
authors: DJ
authors: Murphy
authors: Environmental Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, 955 L'Enfant Plaza SW, Suite 6000, Washington, D.C. 20024, United States.
authors: C E
authors: CE
authors: Clark
mesh_terms: D060587:Groundwater; D000067071:Hydraulic Fracking / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D059206:Natural Gas; D009658:North Dakota; D061329:Oil and Gas Fields; D062065:Wastewater / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis; D062066:Water Resources
chemical_list: D059206:Natural Gas; D062065:Wastewater; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical