Is Clean Fracking Technology The Key To A Greener Earth

By Shirley Evans


As the demand for shale energy rises, so does the rate of environmental degradation. Many countries with economically viable gas deposits still rely on environmentally unsafe techniques in their drilling operations. This is so despite the awareness that has been created on the harm that fracking does to water bodies. As of now, the only hope seems to lie in clean fracking technology.

A vast majority of exploration firms have started to tap into the pioneering benefits of advanced technology in as far as environmental conservation is concerned. The long time spent researching better solutions has seen the development of far reaching improvements to conventional fracking. While it is true that most oil producing states, including the US, depend on energy for a large portion of their GDPs, majority of them have adopted modern solutions despite the uncertainty that they come with.

The truth is that only a few advanced solutions have passed the mark of efficiency in terms of better volume generation. Most upcoming solutions seek to get rid of the dependency on water for fracking. Without a doubt, this is what will largely contribute to a greener earth. Other solutions that are environmentally friendly use recycled water.

Some notable solutions include the adoption of drilling techniques that prevent the escape of environmentally unsafe gases such as methane. This will be a big plus to the environment, especially bearing in mind the fact that methane is one of the biggest contributors to global warming. In light of this, there is increased support for the use of such techniques from green energy lobbyists.

As the push for green energy technologies gathers momentum worldwide, there are a select few innovations that have left a mark and have been adopted massively. One technological innovation that falls in this category is water free fracking. Currently, it is the most used new drilling technology, and it has registered far reaching positive effects in the conservation of water bodies.

Brine and recycled water are options that are also widely used today. As a result of the dependency on viscous liquids for the gas extraction procedure, technological improvement has made it possible for dirty water to be recycled for use in drilling. This improvement has seen a reduction in the dependency on clean water from lakes and wells.

For years, carbon emitted from diesel fumes has been the most notorious contributor to greenhouse emissions. Despite this knowledge, there are exploration companies that still rely on diesel dependent machines for drilling, thereby contributing to global warming by a big margin. This is in spite of the fact that diesel is an expensive fuel. Luckily, the year 2013 saw the introduction of natural gas operated drilling equipment. Their usage has helped many companies lower their operational expenditure.

If the statistics are anything to go by, exploration firms that depend on them have managed to lower their fuel expenditure by 40 percent. In turn, they have generated more revenue and freed up crucial funds for further research. Authoritative figures in the exploration world even opine that diesel dependency can be cut by 70 percent in future.




About the Author:



No comments: